


Disclosing the Truth

by SpiritSoul



Series: Crescendo [3]
Category: Ghost (Swedish Band), Priest (Swedish Band)
Genre: ABBA, Angels, Dreams and Nightmares, F/M, Gaining back memories, Hallucinations, Love Confessions, M/M, Magic, Masturbation, Nods to the band Priest, Potions, Satanism, Secrets, Song Lyrics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-26
Updated: 2017-11-10
Packaged: 2018-10-11 00:06:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 20
Words: 52,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10450563
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpiritSoul/pseuds/SpiritSoul
Summary: They say that ignorance is bliss. Perhaps it would've been wise for her to listen to that statement.





	1. All Work and no Play?

The weeks went by and, steadily, Cadence began to improve. She was able to summon her weapon much faster. Mist had helped her refine her combat skills. Her relationships with the Ghouls and their familiars had gotten much better, although Alpha still didn’t seem to like her very much. He wouldn’t speak with her as frequently as the others, often limiting their conversations to at most a couple sentences at a time.

Earth was being a great roommate. Instead of letting Cadence sleep on a rock like he did, he grew an entire bed of flowers for her. He also helped her to memorize the alchemy symbols, ensuring that she wouldn’t mix the Ghouls up. Sometimes, they would practice the songs together: Cadence would sing while Earth would play on his drum kit. Sometimes, they would even let Air set up his keyboard so he could join in as well.

She still wasn’t able to communicate with all the familiars yet, but she had been able to get to know a few. Recently, she had started to notice a pattern between the familiars and their owners: their personalities were quite similar. Dahlia was playful, happy, and energetic, just like Earth. Winter was calm, brave, and kind, like Mist. Like Air, Azrael often didn’t say much, but was calm and assertive.

Finally, her relationship with Emeritus couldn’t have been better. The two of them got along perfectly. Over time, Cadence began to notice that, no matter what kind of night he seemed to be having, her presence always seemed to cheer him up. She felt proud knowing that she could make Meliora’s leader smile just by being there with him.

The chimes sounded overhead twelve times, with two quick rings after the twelfth, signaling to everyone in the building that it was twelve thirty. Cadence, currently located in the building’s library, looked up from the book she was reading and glanced at the clock on the wall. She smiled, closed the book, and looked down at the tiny kitten that was curled up in a ball in front of her on the table.

“Alright, Liam. Time to get up, sleepyhead,” she said.

But the calico kitten did not budge when it was called. His tiny tail moved once, but he did not open his eyes.

“Liam.” Cadence repeated the name, a little louder this time.

“Mmf...five more minutes…” he mumbled groggily, adjusting his head in his paws. 

Cadence sighed and put the book she was holding back onto the shelf where she had gotten it from. “Liam, it’s twelve thirty. I need to meet up with Papa for my singing lesson.” She looked back down at her familiar and folded her arms, smiling. “And you need to meet up with Annali for your training.”

Liam’s eyes cracked open, revealing bright blue irises. 

“...I don’t wanna,” he whined. “I don’t like training. It’s boring.”

Cadence sighed again. So far, unlike all the other familiars and their owners, she and Liam appeared to be opposites. She couldn’t identify many similarities between the two of them - whenever she was eager to do something, he preferred to sleep. And when he was in the mood to play, it was at the most inappropriate of times. The only trait they seemed to share was immense curiosity.

“Well, I have to go to training every night as well, and you don’t hear me complaining about it.” She reached out and scooped the tiny kitten up into her arms. “Come on.” Cadence then turned, headed for the door, and walked out into the hallway. But as she walked, Liam continued to protest.

“You can’t make me!” Liam cried, attempting to squirm his way out of Cadence’s grasp as they passed by the closed door to Earth’s room.

Cadence sighed as she rolled her eyes, and looked down at her familiar, smiling. “I can, and I will.”

Liam tilted his head up and met her eyes.

“Well, this time, I have backup!”

Cadence stopped in her tracks. The look in her lavender eyes was one of interest, confusion, and just a slight hint of annoyance. “...Backup?”. 

Liam nodded his head. “That’s right, backup,” he answered confidently. The tiny kitten then turned his head towards Earth’s room, and soon raised his voice to a yell.  
“Someone help me, I’m being catnapped!”

At first, nothing happened. But before long, there was the sound of hurried shuffling coming from Earth’s room. The door to the room opened slowly, but no one was there.

“Dun da-da-dun DUUUUUN!” Dahlia’s high-pitched voice broke the silence, and she dashed out into the hallway a moment later. A piece of bright red cloth had been attached to her black collar, making it look like the tabby kitten was wearing a superhero cape. Cadence couldn’t help but giggle.

Dahlia put her front paw down onto the floor and held her head high. 

“Fear not, my tiny munchkin friend!” she exclaimed, her bright green eyes focused on Liam. “I, Hy-purr Cat, shall save you from the catnapper! Her deeds against kitten-kind will not go unpunished!” The tabby kitten then focused her attention on Cadence and stomped her front paw again. “Now, catnapper, I demand that you release him. If you fail to comply with my demands, then there will be consequences most severe!” 

Cadence’s smile widened, and she started to play along. A sinister grin appeared on her face. 

“Never!” she replied, holding Liam close to her. “If you want him, you’ll have to get me first!” The young acolyte then turned and dashed down the hall, laughing while Liam continued to fight against her grip.

The kitten turned to look back into the room. “Earth, my trusty sidekick, where are you?! Help me catch the catnapper!”

A sigh was heard from the room, and before long, Earth was standing in the doorway. “Why am I always the sidekick?” he asked.

“No time for questions! There is a major cat-astrophe going on right now! We must focus on the task at paw!” Dahlia turned to face the direction that Cadence had gone. “CHAAAAAARGE!”

Without warning, Dahlia scampered off after Cadence, the bell on her collar ringing loudly as she ran. Earth followed, but walked behind his familiar instead of ran.

“Earth! Walk faster!” Dahlia yelled. “If you don’t hurry, the catnapper will inflict cat-lateral damage on Liam!”

Earth blinked. “...Do you even know what that term means?” he asked.

“Nope! I just wanted to make the pun.”

The Ghoul sighed and rolled his eyes as the two of them continued down the hallway. But before long, they suddenly found themselves at (Dun dun DUUUUN!) a crossroad. 

“Hmm…” Dahlia glanced down each hallway, but saw no signs of Cadence anywhere. “...This is most certainly a troubling predicament…” The tabby kitten sat down onto the floor as she continued to glance down each hallway over and over, finding no sign of Cadence anywhere. “...Hey, Earth, what's the probability of the catnapper picking each of these hallways?”

“Um… well, there's three hallways, and each one should have an equal probability. So ten divided by three is three… which means you have to subtract the nine from ten...bring down the other zero to make the remainder, which equals one, into a ten…”

“No time for that!” Dahlia held up a paw as she abruptly interrupted the Ghoul. She then put it down. “Now… if I were a catnapper, where would I be…?” The tabby kitten thought long and hard, narrowing her eyes as she stared at the hallway in front of her. But before long, her eyes slowly shut and her head suddenly drooped downward. She began to snore.

Earth groaned in frustration. She had seriously just fallen asleep?! “Dahlia!” he said, calling his familiar’s name. But the kitten only continued to sleep. The Ghoul sighed, bent down, and picked Dahlia up, petting her head for a moment. He then turned and proceeded to head back towards his room…

A tiny, high pitched sneeze made him abruptly stop in his tracks. Dahlia’s head popped off his arm, and the kitten turned her head towards the sound.

“Ah-ha!” Dahlia leaped onto the floor and headed in the direction of the rightmost hallway. After a moment, she stopped and spoke again. “I have found you, catnapper!”

Earth chuckled and followed his familiar. When he turned the corner, he saw that Cadence was hiding behind a medium-sized pillar with a fancy vase on top of it. He folded his arms across his chest.

“Alright, Cadence…”

“Catnapper!” Dahlia meowed, interrupting him.

The Ghoul sighed. “...Catnapper…” He held out one hand towards Cadence. “Hand him over, and there will be no consequences.” He then glanced at Dahlia for a moment, then smiled. “I'm... paw-sitive.”

Still smiling and playing along, Cadence held back a groan as she narrowed her eyes at the Ghoul and his familiar. She held Liam close to her.

“No! He is going to training whether he likes it or not!”

Once again, Cadence turned and dashed down the hall, eager to get to Emeritus’ room on time. This little game was fun, but she had to get to her singing lesson soon. As she ran, she turned her head to glance behind her, and saw that Dahlia were still in pursuit of her. Earth was attempting to carefully put the vase that had apparently fallen back onto the pillar.

“I'm not done with you, catnapper!” Dahlia yelled, trying desperately to keep up despite her short legs. “Get back here!”  
Cadence laughed as she watched the tabby cat that was following her, not paying any attention to where she was going. “Hahaha! You'll never catch me, Hy-purr Cat!” she said. “My victory is within-!”

The young acolyte was abruptly cut off when she suddenly collided into someone and fell to the floor. She blinked a few times, then rubbed her head and looked up once she had recovered. When she saw who she had run into, her eyes widened.  
“O-oh! S-sister Imperator! I… I, uh…”

The woman pressed her lips together into a thin line as she stared down at Cadence with an annoyed expression. She did not break her gaze even when Earth rounded the corner, finally catching up to Dahlia. When he saw she was there, his eyes widened, and he immediately stopped dead in his tracks.  
When Sister spoke, her tone was cold and unamused.

“...Ms. Cantwell?” 

Even after all this time, Imperator still refused to address Cadence by the name Papa had given her. To her, Cadence did not belong amongst the Ghouls and the other members of the clergy. No matter how much training the girl had gone through, she was still a lower class citizen.

“Stop staring! Get up off the floor!” she commanded. The woman watched as Cadence put Liam down onto the floor and obeyed her order with haste. “Care to explain why you were running through the halls like a child that's been left to roam freely around a playground?” she asked.

Cadence took slow breaths as she attempted to decrease the speed of her accelerated heart. “I-I was… playing a game with Dahlia and Liam…” It wasn’t a lie. Technically, the whole thing had been just a game.

“...Playing a game?” Sister repeated. Her eyes then narrowed. “...You are aware that this is a place of work, correct?”

Cadence nodded her head in reply. “Yes, Sister,” she answered.

“And that, as an acolyte, you are required to work?”

“Yes, Sister,” Cadence repeated, nodding her head once again.

“And you are aware that you are technically a guest in this residence, and that, if you fail to perform your required duties and take your role seriously, the clergy can dispatch you at any time?!”

Cadence’s eyes widened, and she quickly responded with haste. “Y-yes, Sister! I'm aware of that! I-it won't happen again!”

Sister remained silent for a moment, then sighed, seemingly satisfied with her answer. “I don’t give second chances often, Ms. Cantwell,” she said in a threatening tone of voice. “It would be wise to make sure that you don’t make mistakes like that again.”

Cadence nodded again, silently this time.

“Oh, and one other thing that I believe you both need to be reminded of.” Sister glared at Earth for a moment before refocusing her attention on Cadence.  
“I want to remind both of you that relationships with other members of the clergy that are more than just acquaintances will not be tolerated!”

Both acolytes cringed slightly upon hearing the volume of Sister Imperator’s voice increase. They watched as the woman glared at them in silence, then closed her eyes and sighed.

“That is all,” she said. “A good night to you both.”

Earth watched as Sister walked past them and turned the corner. He waited until she was completely out of sight before he turned to face Cadence. There was a look of confusion on her face.

“...What was that last part about?” she asked. “About the relationships.”

Earth shuffled in his spot and averted his eyes for a moment before he met the girl’s gaze again. “...Can you keep a secret, Cadence?” he asked, timidly.

Silently, Cadence nodded her head in reply, and the Ghoul hesitated before he leaned forward to whisper in her ear.

“...It's Air,” he whispered.

Cadence's eyes widened. “No way…” she whispered.

“You better believe it. It's true.”

“Y-you mean you two are…”

Dahlia suddenly piped up. “Earth and Air, sitting in a tree! K-I-S-”

Earth abruptly turned his head and glared at his familiar, stopping the tabby cat right in the middle of her song.

“Aaaaanyway, now that you know that...” Earth said, taking a step back as he turned back toward Cadence. “...Why did Sister look at you when she said that? Are you in a relationship with anyone?”

"Wh-what?! No!" Cadence replied shaking her head. "I don't know anyone here well enough yet to be in a relationship with them!"

But as she stared into his blue-green eyes, Cadence wondered if Earth could actually see right through her facade.


	2. More Secrets

The last few notes of ‘Majesty’ played from the Testament, and Cadence took the time to catch her breath as she lowered her arms. When she opened her eyes, she saw that Emeritus was smiling at her and applauding her performance, just like every other time she sang for him.

“Well done, Cadence!” he said, still clapping. “Well done!”

The young acolyte smiled back at him. “Thanks, Papa.” Cadence turned back towards the music stand and tapped the screen on the Testament, pausing the next song just as it was about to start. She then closed her eyes and stretched for a moment. It had been a long half-hour of practicing and, while it had been fun, Cadence was thankful to finally get some rest.

When she opened her eyes once more, she watched as Papa made his way over to the sofa near the lit fireplace and sat down. He picked up one of the teacups that was on the tray that had been placed on the table beside it, then looked over at Cadence and patted the cushion beside him. The young acolyte smiled and made her way over, sitting down beside the dark pope just as he finished pouring some tea into the cup he was holding. He handed it to her before pouring some more into another cup for himself.

“No meeting tonight?” Cadence asked. She blew on the hot beverage in an attempt to cool it off.

“Not a single one.” Emeritus leaned back into the cushions and sighed. “It’s rather nice. Sister Imperator usually ensures that my schedule is full every night.”

Cadence nodded her head and hummed in response, then took a small sip of her tea. It tasted a bit lemony, but not overwhelmingly sour.

Papa turned his head to look at her, his smile suddenly gone. “...What’s wrong, Ghuleh?”

The young acolyte only sighed and lowered her head, staring at the cup in her hands. 

Despite receiving no response, Emeritus seemed to understand what Cadence was upset about. He took a sip from his own drink before speaking up again. “You don’t like Sister Imperator?” he asked.

Cadence took another sip and sighed again.

“...No, I don’t,” she said. “Honestly… she scares me.”

“How so?”

“Well…” Cadence paused for a moment. “She just constantly has this… look in her eyes that I don’t like. It’s like she’s a cat and I’m a tiny mouse that she’s backed into a corner. And not to mention her constant shouting! She yells at me for even the tiniest of mistakes!”

Papa nodded his head, then smiled once more. “Well, Ghuleh, you want to know something?” he asked.

Cadence gave no verbal response, but turned her head to look at him. Only after the two of them had made eye contact did Emeritus continue talking. 

“You’re not the only one she’s acted that way towards,” he said. “Sister has yelled at the Ghouls and other members of the clergy countless times.” He paused, and took a sip of his tea. “Including me.”

Cadence’s eyes widened. “...Even you?” she asked. “B-but you’re the ruler of Meliora! Aren’t you above her?”

Emeritus pressed his lips together into a thin line and exhaled through his nose. “Sister’s the one who makes the decisions. All I have to do is just sign my name in order to make them official and put them into action.” He stared down at the cup in his hands. “And, most of the time, I have no choice but to sign, even if I don’t like the choice that’s being made.”

“Oh my gosh…” Cadence said. She then paused for no more than a few seconds before continuing to speak. “Can’t… can’t you ask someone of a higher power to get rid of or replace her? Surely there must be someone…”

Emeritus did not turn to look at her. He just continued to stare at his teacup in silence.

Cadence blinked, and she furrowed her brow. “Oh...It’s out of the question, isn’t it?” she asked.

Her question was met with only more silence. But before long, Papa looked up and turned to face her, a smile once again on his face. 

“Well, no matter,” he said. “Just take my advice and be respectful around her, no matter how much she may get under your skin. Alright?”

Cadence sighed and nodded her head in response. She placed her half-empty teacup onto the floor. “Okay.”

“Oh, and Ghuleh,” Papa continued. “There’s absolutely not a single problem with trying to have a good time with the Ghouls and the other familiars. Honestly…” He placed his teacup back onto the tray, and his smile widened as he turned to look back at Cadence. “...I firmly believe that there’s nothing wrong with trying to have a little fun once in awhile.”

Cadence nearly jumped when she saw Papa move in closer towards her. She held her breath and stared into his mismatched eyes as brought her close. 

“...Of course,” he whispered. “My definition of ‘fun’ is different than most others.”

Cadence smiled and gave a laugh, and she soon closed her eyes as Papa’s lips met hers. She kissed him passionately as his arms wrapped around her, even attempting to slip her tongue into his mouth. But the dark pope fought for dominance, and soon his own tongue was sliding against hers.

She gasped and moaned loudly when his fingers rubbed the small sigil on the back of her neck, and in an instant she was left completely powerless, granting Emeritus complete access to her mouth. He eagerly explored every crevice, and pressed the girl’s squirming body against his own.

The kiss broke with a loud gasp coming from Cadence. Neither one of them said a word until she had finally caught her breath.

“I win,” Papa said, a triumphant grin on his face.

Cadence smiled back, but narrowed her eyes at him. “You cheated!” she exclaimed.

The two of them both laughed with each other before Papa placed a kiss on Cadence’s forehead and ruffled her hair.

“Wait here,” he said after pulling away from her. “I want to show you something.”

The dark pope got up and made his way past the fireplace and over to the bookshelf. He scanned the books which were lining the shelf for a moment until he finally found the one he was looking for. After taking it out, he made his way over to the sofa and sat down beside Cadence.

“I was reading this book earlier,” he said. “And I found something that was rather interesting.” He opened the book, flipped through a couple pages, then showed it to Cadence once he had found the page he had been searching for.

“Your birthnight is September eighth. About a week from now.” He pointed to a large symbol, which seemed to resemble an oddly-shaped “M”. “That makes you a Virgo.”

Cadence tilted her head to the side, confused and intrigued at the same time. “...What does that mean?” she asked.

“Well, according to the book, it means you're loyal, kind, and hardworking. But you're also shy and overly critical of yourself.”

Cadence nodded her head. “That sounds right…” she said. 

“You also like animals and books.”

Cadence smiled. “Also correct.” She then blushed as a memory returned to her. “Well… one certain type of book…”

“What a coincidence! You even have earth as your element!”

Cadence laughed. “Oh, wow!” She then turned and met Papa’s eyes. “So...what are you, Papa?” she asked.

“Glad you asked!” Emeritus flipped a few more pages until he stopped at one with a symbol that resembled two curved lines with a horizontal line going through them. He handed the book to Cadence. “I myself am a Pisces.”

Cadence took the book and began to read through it. “Musical...compassionate...wise… likes romance. Ain't that the truth!... Water is your element? That's interesting...” She continued reading for a bit, but her smile disappeared for a moment when she read one piece of information. “...Papa?”

“Yes? What is it?”

Cadence hesitated before speaking up. “It… it says that you dislike it when the past comes back to haunt you, and you often desire to escape reality…”

“...Oh?” Papa glanced at where Cadence was referring to for a moment, then smiled. ‘Oh, well, this book refers to entire groups, so technically not every single Pisces is exactly the same.”

Cadence nodded her head, then turned to look at Papa again. “So...what does this all mean?”

“Well, when we look at the compatibility between Pisces and Virgo…” He placed his finger on the page and trailed it downward until he reached a smaller version of the Virgo symbol that was on the Pisces page. “It says our signs are opposites, and we are therefore extremely compatible with each other!”

Cadence’s smile returned to her face. She closed the book, placed it beside her, and wrapped her arms around Emeritus. She slammed her lips against Papa’s, kissing him once more. The dark pope placed his hands on her back and lazily rubbed it up and down and in circles.

“I...I love you, Papa,” Cadence whispered, staring into his mismatched eyes as she petted the top of his head, running her fingers through his hair.

Emeritus said nothing. He just smiled, ruffled her hair again, and placed yet another kiss on her forehead.

When the dark pope pulled away from her however, he took notice of the silence that had fallen between them.

“...It’s too quiet,” he mumbled.

Cadence watched as Emeritus reached out towards the table again. He picked up his Testament. The young acolyte leaned over to glance at the screen, watching to see what song he would pick. He had a lot more songs on his Testament than she did on hers.

“Hey, Papa,” she said. “I’ve been wondering something…”

Emeritus stopped scrolling through the song list and turned to look at her. “Yes?”

“How come…” The young acolyte started to speak, but her voice trailed off when she noticed the title of the song that Papa’s finger was hovering over.

It was a song titled “Elizabeth”.

“...What’s that one?” Cadence asked, pointing at it.

Papa followed her gaze until he could read the title of the song as well. However, once he saw which one Cadence was referring to, his smile disappeared and his eyes widened. He immediately flicked his finger across the screen so that the song was out of site. 

“Nothing special,” he answered, the words coming out of his mouth rather quickly. “Just a song…”

Cadence glanced at the dark pope’s face, confused as to why he was so flustered all of a sudden. “...Can I hear it?”

“Absolutely not.” Again, the words rushed out of Emeritus’ mouth rapidly. He continued to scroll through the list of songs until he finally settled on a classical piece. 

Cadence blinked, confused. “Why not?” she asked.

Papa placed the Testament back onto the table. “Because it's for your own good.”

“My own good? It’s just a song!” The girl got onto her knees and attempted to reach over and grab Papa’s Testament from off the table. “C’mon, Papa. Let me hear it! Please?”

But Emeritus swatted Cadence’s hand away before she could reach his Testament.

“Cadence, please.” His tone was beginning to sound threatening. “Believe me when I say this: You do not want to listen to that song.”

“But I do!” Cadence furrowed her brow as she stared at Papa. “I've been singing the exact same songs for weeks, now!” She was beginning to feel frustrated. “Please, Papa. I want to learn something different! Something new!” She tried to reach for the Testament again, but this time Papa grabbed her wrists.

“You will, Cadence. You will.” The dark pope was doing his best to keep the young acolyte at bay. “But not now. You're not ready yet.”

Now Cadence could feel an excessive amount of anger welling up inside her, and it surprised her. Where had this sudden rage come from? But she could not suppress it. The fire had started, and it could not be extinguished. It was already blazing too quickly to control.

“Not ready?!” She yanked her arms out of Papa’s grasp, and her hands balled up into fists. “I practically know all the songs from both Meliora and Popestar by heart! What do you mean, I'm not ready?!”

“I…” Emeritus stopped himself, then turned his head to look away. “I cannot tell you right now.”

“Cannot, or will not?!” Cadence gritted her teeth. “We’ve known each other for more than two years, Papa. Why are you still withholding information from me?” 

“Because you’ll be better off not knowing until later!”

The girl hesitated for a moment, allowing Papa’s words to register, then got up from her seat. She was practically fuming as she glared down at Emeritus, and yet she did not know why. She had never felt such anger before.

“You know what?!” she exclaimed. “If you don’t trust me with anything, then why don’t you just send me off and banish me like you did with-!”

Cadence abruptly stopped herself from finishing her sentence when she finally took notice of the expression on Papa’s face. He wasn’t angry. He looked… afraid. And upset. It was as if he was pleading with her to just listen to him with the look in his eyes. After a moment, he lowered his head without speaking a word.

In that instant, Cadence’s excessive anger disappeared. She stared at the dark pope in silence as she slowly calmed down. Her hands relaxed, and she soon furrowed her brow.

“P-... Papa, I…”

“Get out.”

Cadence’s eyes widened with shock, not believing what she had just heard.. “...Wh-what?”

“I said get out.” Papa lifted his head. It was clear by the tone of his voice and the look in his eyes that he was now agitated. “Leave. I don’t want to see you for the rest of the night.” When Cadence didn’t immediately do as she was told, he became even more visibly upset. “Now!” he yelled, hitting the couch with his fists.

The dark pope watched as Cadence backed a couple steps away from him. She was blinking rapidly, yet he could see tears beginning to leak from her eyes. He was about to lash out at her again when she abruptly turned away from him, and soon ran out the door, sobbing.

He did not flinch when the door slammed behind Cadence and caused the room to shake for a moment. He remained motionless for a minute before he finally picked up his Testament and turned off the music that was playing. Now he welcomed the quiet.

In the silence that had fallen, Emeritus gave a sigh, put his Testament back down, and soon closed his eyes and began to process all that had just transpired during the past few minutes. When he finally recalled what Cadence’s face had looked like when he had ordered her to leave, his eyes snapped open with realization. He had seen someone make that exact same face before. The dark pope covered his mouth with one hand as a plethora of memories suddenly came back to him. His eyes widened. He didn’t want to remember. He wanted to forget.

And he knew only one way how.

Slowly, he tugged his gloves off, placing them beside him on the couch. With one hand, he pressed against the spot where he knew his sigil was and proceeded to rub it through the fabric of his suit. He closed his eyes and sighed as a pleasurable sensation began to run through his body, and soon quickened the movement of his hand to stimulate it further. But the unwanted memories were still invading his mind.

He needed a much stronger sensation. He needed to let the burning fire inside him blaze at its highest intensity until he couldn’t take it any longer.

Sticking one hand underneath his shirt, he continued to stroke the sensitive mark as his other hand trailed lower to the front of his pants. He tugged down on the zipper, pulled out his member, and soon proceeded to stroke it up and down. He was already getting a little hard and he bit his lower lip. He tried to imagine someone else, anyone, just to get the undesirable images out of his head. 

His brow furrowed as he recalled how good it felt to have Cadence’s hands all over his body, stroking and massaging him. Her eyes were always so focused. Her cheeks always had a hint of blush.

And her voice… That beautiful voice which had sung so loudly and boldly into the microphone would always be so hushed and timid. 

“Yes…” he whispered when she asked him if it felt good. “Don’t stop...”

The pace of the hand around his cock increased, and he soon found himself whimpering and occasionally squirming from the touch. As she steadily worked his member, Cadence continued to ask the same question over and over, and over time his responses changed from actual words to pleasure-filled moans. “Don’t stop… Don’t stop...” he chanted.

But then the feeling changed. The hand that was stroking him switched from feminine to masculine. Its grip was much more firm.

He recalled the eyes. The beautiful, pale blue eyes. The smile. And finally, a name. A name which hadn’t passed his lips in a long time.

“O-O...meg…”

The man smiled at him as he moved his hand up and down at an incredibly fast pace.

“Are you about to come, Papa?”

The dark pope moaned loudly and nodded his head in response. 

“Go ahead,” the man said. “Come, min kärlek.”

Emeritus dug his nails into the skin where his sigil was and gripped his cock tightly as he felt his climax crash down on him. His entire body trembled as the hot and thick ropes of come spurted out, coating his hand and landing on his suit and pants. He did not open his eyes until every last drop of pleasure had been expelled, and when he finally did, they focused on nothing.

“...Oh, Omega…” he whispered. He took his hand off of his sigil and leaned back into the couch cushions “...If only the three of them hadn’t rebelled. You would still…” He paused, finally letting the tears roll down his face. “… None of this...would’ve…” He stopped before he could finish his thought, then turned and glanced at the black box that was still on the shelf over the fireplace.

Only then did Cadence finally take her ear off the door and slowly trudge down the dimly-lit hall.


	3. Ancient Language

Alpha sat at the small wooden table near the far right of the dimly lit room, two open books beside him. He wrote on the blank pages of the book in front of him with a pen, occasionally stopping and glancing at the much older and thicker book that was on his left. After reading some of the text for a moment, he turned back towards the book he had been writing in and jotted down more notes.

“...So this is where you’ve been hiding, brother.”

The Fire Ghoul jumped in his seat and turned sharply towards the door. The identical masked being that was there gave a short chuckle.

“Heh. Air told me that I might find you here.”

“You do know that there’s something called knocking, right?” Alpha asked, irritation present in his voice. He then glanced at the door, which he realized was still open. “And shut that door! Do you want Cadence to wander in here?! Of all the rooms in this building, this is the one room she absolutely cannot enter!”

Water’s eyes widened slightly. “Oh, right! S-sorry!” He reached over and closed the door with haste before turning back to look at his brother. The two of them silently exchanged glances for a moment before Alpha turned around and returned to his work.

“Is… is everything alright, Alpha?” Water asked. “You’ve been isolating yourself in here for weeks instead of coming to join the rest of us for meals.” The Ghoul paused and glanced around the room. The walls and floor were made of large, grey stones. Tall wooden shelves lined most of the walls, leaving just enough room for a large table in the middle of the room, a black cauldron that was tucked away in the corner, and the desk which Alpha was seated at.

Alpha paused, stopping himself while he was in the middle of writing another word. His pen hovered over the page for a moment before he sighed and put it down on the table. He closed his eyes and placed one hand on his forehead. His entire face was still obscured by the silver mask.

After a moment, the Fire Ghoul reopened his eyes and leaned back in his chair. His eyes shone like stars in the candlelight as he turned to face Water once more.

“...You want to see what I've been doing, Water?” he asked, finally breaking the silence. Without waiting for an answer, Alpha turned back towards his work and motioned for his brother to come forward with one hand.

Water did not hesitate and immediately walked over to where Alpha was. He peered over his shoulder and glanced at the two books that were on the desk. The book on the left appeared to be much older, and was full of symbols which he did not seem to understand. The second book was much newer and in english, written in Alpha’s handwriting. He glanced once more at the book on the left.

“What… is this?” Water reached a hand out towards the book, but quickly stopped himself for fear of damaging it.

Alpha once again stopped writing. “The language, or the actual book?” he asked.

“Both, actually.”

“Well…” Alpha placed his pen into the book to mark the page he had been on, then proceeded to close the book to show Water the cover. It was a dark evergreen color with a dark grey fancy design in the center. “...you remember that whole thing with the potion making back in Infestissumam?”

Water nodded his head in reply. “Yeah, I do.”

“Well, this thing here is pretty much the guide to making every kind of potion there is.” He pointed to a group of symbols that were on the center of the cover. “The ‘Factorem Elixir’.”

Water’s eyes widened. “Dude, you can actually read that?!”

Alpha sighed and reopened the book to the page he had marked. “I'm the only one left who can,” he said, picking up his pen again.

“...What language is it?” Water asked.

“Enochian. It was used quite a bit during the Opus era. Now it's…” Alpha paused in the middle of his sentence and gave a sigh. “Now it's almost been completely forgotten.”

Water remained silent for a moment, troubled by Alpha’s solemn tone. He glanced at the second book again as the fire Ghoul proceeded to write in it once again. “So… what are you doing now?” he asked.

“Translating it.”

“...Why?”

Alpha stopped writing once again and quietly exhaled through his nose. He was beginning to regret not telling Water to leave and let him work in peace. At this rate, he wouldn’t make as much progress as he had hoped.

“Because…” His grip on the pen tightened. “Because when I die, the Enochian language will become extinct, and those who will come after us will need to know how to make these potions.”

Water’s eyes widened. “Whoa whoa whoa,” he said, placing both hands on Alpha’s arm. “Slow down.” He waited until Alpha turned his head to look at him before continuing. “Who told you that you were going to die? Who said something was going to happen to us?”

“Nobody. I just…” Alpha looked back down at the book in front of him, then sighed and put his pen back down. He placed a hand on his forehead. “Look, Water, this is just between you and me, alright? I don't know if there is something wrong with me or not, but lately, whenever I'm alone, I've been hearing… voices.”

“...Voices?” Water repeated. “Like, demons? Spirits?” His eyes widened. “Oh no. It's not… them, is it?”

Alpha shook his head. “No no, sorry. I should've been more clear. It's just from one person.” He turned to face Water once more. “And, relax. It's not one of them.”

“Then who?”

Alpha hesitated and broke eye contact with the other Ghoul for a moment.

“I… I honestly don't really know,” he said. “I've never actually seen him, just heard his voice. Sometimes he calls himself ‘The Master’, and other times he calls himself... ‘Mercury’.” Another pause. “He keeps telling me to join him and ‘the others’ in ‘The Pit’.” The Fire Ghoul looked up and met Water’s eyes once more. “I'm worried that what he means is that I'm going to die soon. And if that happens, then the rest of you will...” His voice trailed off. 

Silence once again fell between the two of them, and before long Alpha picked up his pen again.

“So because of that, whether I die tomorrow, next week, or in a couple years…” He began to write again. “...I am making it my duty to finish this.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bet you weren't expecting Priest references, we're ya?! :)


	4. Elizabeth

With her head lowered, Cadence threw open the door and stormed into Earth’s room, a scowl clearly present on her face. When she entered, no one greeted her. The room was clearly empty except for herself.

No matter, she told herself. She was just fine with it being that way.

“Why?!” she hissed, talking to herself as if Emeritus was still beside her. “Why can't I?!” The young acolyte stomped forward, not even bothering to shut the door behind her.

“It was just one song!” She kicked one of her legs, scuffing the ground and causing the soil she had stirred up to land in the stream. She watched for a moment as the bits of dirt and rock plummeted into the water, only to be swept away by the slow-moving current. 

She stormed off towards an area of the garden where a large patch of various colorful flowers were growing. Usually, admiring the plants helped Cadence to relax, but this time it didn’t work. Anger and confusion had completely clouded and taken over her mind.

Her eyes fell upon a clump of red roses, and she stared at them for a bit, running her fingers over the petals. Papa had told her once that red roses symbolize love or desire. 

She recalled how the dark pope often acted differently around her when the Ghouls weren't around. He was much more compassionate. There would be this… look in his mismatched eyes that she couldn’t really seem to describe. And there would be this beautiful smile on his painted face whenever he told her he-

The young acolyte stopped herself from finishing the thought and reached out, grabbing a handful of the flowers. Her grip on them was tight, and she did not care whether or not she damaged them.

He had never said it.

Her grip on the flowers tightened even more as the sudden realization came to her, and she gritted her teeth.

Three words. Those three, beautiful, simple words - I love you.

He had never said it.

She herself had spoken them to him so many times, almost every night, but those three words had never left Papa’s lips. Not once.

Tears once more welled up in her eyes, and with a yell, Cadence tore the petals away from the stems, but quickly recoiled and dropped them when she suddenly felt a stinging pain spring up on her hand. The thorns had cut her hand, and drops of blood were beginning to dribble out of the cuts.

Holding her wrist as her hand shook, Cadence stared at the blood running down her palm as she attempted to catch her breath. When she had finally calmed down and all the cuts had healed themselves, she turned her head to glance at a poster of the band that was hanging on the wall nearby. The Ghouls stood behind Emeritus, who was dressed in his pope chasuble and mitre. He seemed to cast a rather judgemental stare at Cadence as she stared back at him.

However, after a moment, a smirk appeared on Cadence’s face. An idea had just popped into her mind.  
“I can’t look at the song, huh?” she asked. Her smile widened. “Well, you’re not here to stop me now, are you Papa?”

Cadence turned and headed over to the area where Earth’s drumkit was set up. There was a black and silver drawer against the wall - the place where Earth stored all his sheet music.

She glanced towards the door once, ensuring that no one was entering the room, before she knelt down and opened the drawer. Upon opening it, Cadence was presented with a large number of folders, each one labeled with a different song title and in alphabetical order. She searched through the folders until she finally found the one she was looking for - the folder titled “Elizabeth”.

The young acolyte risked another glance towards the door before opening the folder. She took out the sheets of paper and began to read through the lyrics.

She didn’t really take much away from the lyrics. What she could figure out, however, was that the song was about a countess named Elizabeth Bathory who despised humanity. She killed peasant girls and bathed in their blood in order to retain her youth. Cadence read over the lyrics a couple more times, but she could not find any reasons as to why Papa wouldn’t want her to look at this song.

Smiling, she placed the sheet music back into the folder and closed it. She chuckled as she began to search for the spot she had originally found it.

“Oh no. Don’t look at that song, Cadence!” she said, beginning to mock Emeritus. “It’s for your own good!” She laughed again as she shut the drawer. “What, was I going to place a curse on myself by reading the lyrics?”

However, Cadence’s smile disappeared when she suddenly began to feel a sharp pain ignite in her head. She shut her eyes tightly as the ache quickly increased and her head began to pound furiously. She groaned and fell to the floor, suddenly feeling ill. 

She had felt this before - when she had that hallucination of the angel fighting her while she was having her very first training session with Air. Was it happening again? And if so, why now?

Her eyes shot open when she heard a high pitched blood-curdling scream somewhere down the hall. She immediately sat up and glanced towards the doorway, which had somehow been shut. The pain in her head and the nausea had both suddenly disappeared.

“Lavana…”

Cadence surprised herself as the name spilled past her lips. She didn't know anyone named “Lavana”. Why had that name come to mind? Regardless, the young acolyte felt a need to find this person immediately. 

She stood up and rushed towards the door, flinging it open as soon as she got there and rushed out into the hall. But everything around her had now changed. The walls and floors appeared to be made of stone. Large torches lined the walls, illuminating the surroundings. There was a dark red carpet along the floor, as well as dark purple drapes hanging near extremely large windows which presented a view of the outside world.

Abruptly, Cadence stopped and stared through one of the windows. Her eyes widened. Meliora now no longer resembled the city she had once known. The building she was in appeared to be on a high mountaintop of sorts overlooking a village which was surrounding it on all sides.

And the village was burning.

Cadence stared in shock at the sight being presented in front of her before something else abruptly caught her eye - her own reflection. She now resembled an older woman in about her late twenties/early thirties, with pale skin, long dark brown hair that went past her shoulders, and the same purple eyes she had before. Dark makeup covered her lips and eyelids. 

Along with her face, her outfit had changed as well. Now, instead of the black and crimson robe, she wore a long, form fitting, sleeveless black and purple dress. Black gloves with white alchemical glyphs on the backs and palms were present on her hands, and there was still a black masquerade mask covering her face.

The sound of a crash drew her attention away from the burning village and her reflection, and she continued to run in the direction the scream had come from. She burst through a set of double doors to enter the next long corridor, then glanced at her surroundings. Looking down at the floor, she saw pieces of a broken vase, a stone pillar that had been toppled over…

...and a black and white cat that was sprawled across the carpet; completely motionless.

Cadence gasped upon seeing the cat, and before long another name came to mind.

“Alistair…”

The young acolyte once again surprised herself after she spoke the name. However, what surprised her even more was that her voice did not sound like her own. It sounded much more mature.

Cadence took a step forward towards the cat, but immediately stopped abruptly after doing so. She turned to look back towards the double doors she came through earlier. She had just heard some sort of noise that she couldn’t seem to identify, and it sounded like whatever was making the noise was coming closer to her. But the noise didn’t frighten her.

Narrowing her eyes, Cadence held up her right hand and tugged down on the glove, ensuring that it was on. The glyphs on her gloves began to glow a purple hue, and before long, magic began to swirl from her fingertips.   
She listened for the sound again, and noted that this time it sounded much closer than before. The noise also seemed to resemble the sound of chains being dragged along the floor.

Without warning, the doors burst open, and two extremely long chains, somehow hovering in midair, were sent flying towards her. Cadence narrowed her eyes in concentration, and at the moment the chains were just about to reach her, she swung her right arm in a wide arc. Immediately, a blast of purple magic was sent flying at one of the chains. The blast hit its intended target and knocked back the chain. Afterwards, Cadence proceeded to do the same with the other chain.

She repeated the same action over and over as she attempt to fend off both the chains. However, even after taking multiple hits, the chains still continued to move towards her, not showing any signs of letting up. 

Cadence couldn’t keep it up much longer. She was quickly becoming tired as she continued to fire off more and more blasts at a much faster rate than before.

“Whoever is doing this, I demand that you stop this instant!” she yelled, glancing down the hall.

But that one glance down the hallway distracted her at the worst possible moment. As Cadence turned back to focus on the chains again, she attempted to fire another magic blast at an oncoming chain. But she missed, and before Cadence could do anything else, the chain wrapped itself tightly around her right arm and held her in place. The second chain did the same to her left arm, and before long the young acolyte found herself being suspended off the ground; the chains somehow hovering in midair seemingly on their own accord. 

Cadence gritted her teeth and tried to tug and the chains in an attempt to free herself, but to no avail.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Elizabeth, but we don’t take orders from you anymore.”

Cadence looked up upon hearing an unfamiliar voice near her left and turned in the direction of the sound. When she turned, she saw a young male of around twenty years of age with shaggy brown hair and bright red eyes walking towards her. She noticed the wings on his back, and in an instant a name came to mind.

“Michael?!” she yelled, anger and shock present in her voice. “Where are your brothers?!”

Michael sighed and stretched his arms. “Oh, they’re around,” he replied in a bored tone.

Cadence narrowed her eyes. “How in Belial’s name did you three escape the dungeon?!” she asked, demanding an answer.

The angel laughed, and a smirk appeared on his face.

“Oh, Elizabeth, it really would have been wise if you hadn’t taught one of us how to choke someone with a piece of fabric effectively.” His smile widened, and he folded his arms across his chest. “The guards didn’t even stand a chance.”

Cadence tugged at the chains again. “Release me this instant!” she yelled. “You and your brothers are the ones who deserve to be in chains for your impudent actions, not me!” Her eyes narrowed. “And you will address me properly as ‘Mistress’!”

Michael unfolded his arms, sighed, and shrugged his shoulders as he shook his head.

“Sorry, I can’t,” he said. He then met Cadence’s eyes. “I’m not the one controlling the chains.”

Cadence opened her mouth to speak, but stopped herself when she noticed someone else out of the corner of her eye. She turned her head to look at the new arrival. He looked almost identical to Michael; the only difference being that his eyes were gold instead of scarlet, and his outfit was white and yellow instead of white and red. Cadence’s eyes widened when she saw that this second angel was holding the ends of the chains in one hand, and a staff with a bright green jewel in the other.

“Wh- Raphael!” she exclaimed. “I demand-”

“That I release you?” Raphael’s smile widened, and he raised an eyebrow. “Or what, Elizabeth, you’ll cut me open and bathe in my blood?” He chuckled. “Highly unlikely.”

Cadence nearly snarled at the yellow angel and tugged at her restraints once again. “What is the meaning of all this?!” she asked. “What is going on?!”

The two angels turned to look at each other, and without saying a word, nodded their heads at the same time. After a moment, both of them turned to look back at Cadence.

“You see, Elizabeth, all of this,” Michael gestured around the hallway and out the window towards the burning village with one hand. “is about purpose.” The red angel lowered his arm. “Each and every one of us has a purpose; a reason to live. Without it, we would not exist.” His smile soon faded away, and after a moment he turned away from her. “However...over these past few years we’ve come to realize that everyone here has a purpose…” He then gestured to himself, then Raphael. “…except for us.”

Cadence watched as Michael summoned a sword with a white blade and a gold hilt with a red stone. Walking over to the wall behind him, he slashed the wall with the blade, tearing it with ease despite the fact that it was made of stone. When he took a step back, the slash glowed a bright red. Cadence watched as what appeared to be a small black paw reach out from the crevice, and before long a black snow leopard cub with white speckles covering its fur had bounded out and landed on the floor. It sat down on the carpet and gazed up at Cadence with its burgundy eyes.

Cadence stared back at the snow leopard cub for a moment in silence before lifting her head to look back at Michael. She raised an eyebrow, intrigued by yet suspicious of Michael’s actions.

“Think back, Elizabeth,” Michael said, turning back to face her. “What did Lucifer tell Papa Lavana’s purpose was?”

But Cadence refused to answer. She kept her mouth shut and turned to look back at the village down below. She watched as a magnificent griffin flew by the window and descended upon the small town below.

“Answer the question, Countess,” Raphael demanded. “Or else you might lose more than just your pride.” He twirled his staff in a small circular motion. 

Immediately, the chains tightened their hold on Cadence and tugged her arms sharply, seemingly in an attempt to tear them completely out of the sockets. Cadence gritted her teeth in an attempt to hold back a cry of pain and turned her head to look back at Michael as the answer came to mind.

“T-To give birth to Asmodeus,” she answered.

Michael nodded his head. “Yes, that's correct. But what about after that?”

She opened her mouth to speak, but quickly shut it soon after. She tried to rack her brain for an answer, but none came to her.

Michael raised an eyebrow. “...No answer?” he asked. His smile widened. “Good. Because she doesn't have one anymore now that the antichrist has been born.”  
The angel glanced over at Raphael when he gave a laugh, as if finding what Michael had said to be funny.

“We told that to Lavana,” Michael continued, turning back towards Cadence. “...and after that, we made her an offer.” Keeping his eyes focused on her, he took a step towards the black leopard cub, which still hadn’t moved from its spot. 

“We offered her a chance to have a purpose again. All she had to do was join our side and help us rebel against the rest of the clergy.” 

Another step forward.

“We thought that it was an offer she couldn’t possibly refuse, but…” He paused, then gave a sigh. “Well, she liked the first part, but as soon as we told her that she’d have to go against Emeritus, she immediately backed down.”

Another step. 

“...So you know what we did to her?”

Michael lowered his head and looked down at the black leopard cub by his feet. Without warning, he lunged towards it, grabbing the cub tightly in a savage grip with one hand. He raised his sword, and did not hesitate before bringing it down with force. The leopard cub yowled as it was impaled, then quickly went limp before it dissolved into black dust and disappeared without a trace.

When all was silent once more, Raphael tossed something onto the ground, which landed in front of Cadence. It was a black and purple circlet.

Cadence’s eyes widened. “No…” she whispered, the realization finally hitting her - although she did not know why or how she knew. She couldn’t recall seeing the circlet before, let alone anyone wearing it.

“Yes. And to little Asmodeus as well.”

Michael raised his head and met Cadence’s eyes, a wide grin once more spread across his face.

“...Perhaps you’ll be a bit more cooperative than her,” he said. “After all, you’re lacking a purpose as well.”

Cadence gritted her teeth as she glared at the angel in front of her. She shook her arms, attempting to break the chains once more.

“You are a fool if you believe that I will join you,” she spat.

Michael closed his eyes and sighed, his smile fading as he shook his head.

“Shame. Seems that you and Lavana will be sharing the same fate, now.”

Cadence’s eyes widened when someone reached out from behind her and placed something sharp and cold on her neck. It was a knife. 

“Go on, brother,” Raphael said, encouraging the person with the knife who was behind Cadence. “You know where to cut.”

Cadence swallowed thickly. When she spoke, she attempted to not sound frightened despite the current situation.

“Gabriel!” she scolded, speaking to the person behind her. “Don’t you dare!”

The angel behind her said nothing, and did not take the dagger away. Looking down, Cadence noticed that his hand was shaking as he held the knife at her throat.

“Mistress…” Gabriel whispered, his voice trembling. “I...I'm sorry…”

“Don't-” 

But that was as far as Cadence got before Gabriel swiftly slashed her throat open. Blood gushed out of the deep wound, and Raphael made the chains release their hold on her as Cadence struggled for breath. As darkness began to creep into her vision, she reached out with one hand as if in an attempt to grab the hand of a savior. But none came to her aid, and before long, her vision went completely black, and everything was cold.

She couldn’t move. She couldn’t speak. She couldn’t feel or see anything. She felt like she was falling. This was most certainly death.

Then she felt something - a hand, warm like a burning fire, trailing up her arm, just grazing her with its fingertips. As it reached her shoulder and slid to her collarbone, Cadence could clearly see, despite the pitch black darkness, that it was a feminine hand.

“Look at me, Elizabeth,” a voice next to her commanded.  
Slowly, Cadence obeyed the command. When she finally turned towards where the voice had come from, she saw a woman beside her. She was beautiful, practically breathtaking. Young, extremely pale skin, long black hair that shone despite the darkness, and eyes which seemed to alternate between a scarlet red and a bright orange, like flames. There was a definite air of authority around her.

She stared at the woman in silence, and before long, a name came to mind. But when she opened her mouth to speak, she struggled to get the name out.

“L-...Lucifer…” she whispered; her voice extremely raspy.  
The devil knelt down beside her, still keeping her hand on her collarbone. Cadence desperately wanted to reach out to her - to feel more of the pleasant heat on her body and escape the frigid cold. But she could only move her head.

“Elizabeth.” Lucifer placed her other hand on Cadence’s other shoulder. “I will not allow this. You have not come even remotely close to fulfilling your purpose, yet.” She leaned in closer to her. “You shall live.”

The devil placed one hand over the gash on Cadence’s throat, then leaned forward and placed her lips on hers. Immediately, Cadence felt a pleasant warmth beginning to radiate through her entire body. She could once again breathe through her nose, and the air around her was beginning to no longer feel cold.

But then the intensity of the heat increased. It was burning. She felt like there was a huge weight on her entire body that was crushing her. She still couldn't move. Her head was pounding. She felt like she was choking. 

Cadence opened her mouth in a silent scream when the devil pulled away from her. She watched as the vision of Lucifer slowly faded away as the darkness surrounding her dispersed.

Only when all the clouds of inky blackness had completely disappeared did the air return to a normal temperature. The burning and crushing feeling disappeared, and her head stopped pounding. 

Blinking in an attempt to let her eyes focus, she found herself on a canopy bed. And she heard a sound.

Quiet sobbing.


	5. Forgiven For a Moment

It took Cadence a couple moments to take in her surroundings, and when she did she bolted upright, gasping for breath. Looking down at herself after she had calmed down, she saw that she was once again in the black and red robes she had been wearing earlier. Her mask, however, was gone.

Still trembling slightly, she placed a hand on her neck. But when she felt the area where she had been cut, she could feel nothing. Now the young acolyte was confused. Had that all been a dream? A hallucination? It had felt so real...

She became aware of the sound of crying again, and soon realized that there was someone else beside her. Turning her head in the direction of the sound, Cadence saw that Emeritus was sitting on the edge of the bed with his back facing her. His gloves had been removed and were next to him on the sheets.

Cadence watched for a moment as Papa rubbed his eyes with one hand. Her brow furrowed with worry. She had never actually seen Papa cry before. Slowly, she inched her way over to the dark pope.

“P-...Papa?” she murmured timidly. It was possible that he was still mad at her.

The sobbing ceased. Papa took his hand away from his face and raised his head slightly. After a moment, he turned his head to look at her. A look of relief washed over his face.

“Ghuleh…” 

Cadence took notice of the tears in his eyes, and her worry grew. “Are… are you alright?” she asked.

Papa smiled slightly, but not much. “...Alright?” he repeated. He stood up, wiping his hand on his jacket, then turned around to face Cadence once more. But when he faced her this time, the smile was gone.

The dark pope looked furious with her.

“No, I'm not alright,” he answered, anger filling his voice. “Far from it, in fact.” 

He took a step towards the bed, making Cadence jump back. Before she could get far, however, Papa reached out and snatched her wrist, pulling her back towards him. 

“I told you to not look at that song, did I not?” he asked, rage burning in his mismatched eyes. When Cadence remained silent, he gripped her wrist tighter. “Answer!”   
His voice seemed to echo in the room.

Cadence winced from how tightly Papa was gripping her wrist, but she still managed to answer his question after being commanded to. 

“Y-yes!” she replied, beginning to feel guilt deep inside her.

“And yet…” Papa’s hand began to shake. “And yet you decided to sneak off and look at it without anyone knowing! Without my permission!” 

Emeritus gritted his teeth, then reached out and grabbed her chin, forcing her to meet his eyes.

“Listen to me, Cadence!” he yelled. “I allowed you to become a member of this clergy, and I can most certainly kick you out and turn you back into a lower class citizen. I am the Papa. You have no right to disrespect me! No! Right!” 

He released his hold on her chin, but continued to maintain a firm grip on her wrist.

“Therefore, whenever I tell you to do something, you do it and you don't object!”

Cadence cried out when Papa threw down her arm. She stared up at him with wide, fearful eyes as he stepped away from the bed again.

“But because you had the audacity to disobey me, despite my constant begging that you do not do so…!” He gritted his teeth again, and abruptly raised his hand as he took a sharp intake of breath.

Cadence cried out as she shut her eyes and turned away, burying her face in the sheets. She balled up the fabric in her hands and braced herself.

But the slap never came.

Cautiously, Cadence cracked her eyes open, then slowly raised her head and turned back towards Papa. He no longer looked angry; the rage had disappeared from his eyes. Now the dark pope appeared remorseful. 

“Ghuleh…” His voice trembled. Tears were once again collecting in his eyes. Without saying a word he made his way over to Cadence and slowly wrapped his arms around her.

At that moment, Cadence broke down.

“I'm sorry!” she sobbed. “I'm sorry! I'm sorry!” She buried her face in the black fabric of his suit as the tears continued to stream down her face. “I won’t do it again! I’m sorry!”

“Shh, it’s alright.” Papa gently placed one hand on the back of her head as he held her. “Don’t cry.” He could feel the tears beginning to leak out of his own eyes, but he quickly wiped them away with his hand. 

“Ghuleh, please...don’t cry,” he whispered. “You know I hate seeing you cry.”

As Cadence took her hand off his shoulder, he cupped her cheek with one hand. Before she could say anything to him, he leaned forward. Closing his eyes, he placed his lips on hers and began kissing her softly.

Cadence stopped sobbing and cracked her eyes open for a moment before reclosing them. As she kissed back, she wrapped her arms around him. 

Emeritus slowly rubbed her back with one hand, caressing Cadence as he kissed her over and over.

He hesitated before pulling back, gently grazing his teeth against Cadence’s lower lip as he did so. As he stared at the girl in front of him, Papa took his hand and wiped a tear off of Cadence’s face with his thumb. She sniffed and blinked rapidly as she took her hands off him and lowered her head.

“...I’m sorry,” Cadence repeated, murmuring quietly.

“Cadence.” Papa placed a hand underneath her chin and tilted her head up. “I want what’s best for you. I want to make sure that you remain safe.” He brushed a few strands of hair out of her eyes. “And in order for that to happen, you must remember that even though you’re no longer a lower class citizen, I’m still the one in charge.” He paused, staring at her for a moment, then took her hand. “Just promise me that something like this will never happen again.”

Cadence said nothing for a moment, then nodded her head. “O-okay…” she said. She traced an ‘X’ over her heart with her empty hand. “I...I promise.”

A smile reappeared on Papa’s face, and he let go of her hand. “Thank you,” he said.

Cadence smiled back at him, but after a moment she glanced down at Papa’s hand and her eyes widened. There seemed to be something wrong with it. Reaching out, she grabbed the dark pope’s wrist and stared at his palm. Some of skin looked red.

It appeared to be… burned.

“Y-your hand!” she exclaimed. The young acolyte reached out to observe the other hand, and saw that it looked the same. She raised her head to look back up at Emeritus. “P-Papa, what happened?! What caused this?!”

Emeritus, his smile having disappeared again, looked down at the palms of his hands and stared at them with her for a moment in silence.

“It’s nothing,” he replied, turning away from her. The dark pope reached over, grabbed his gloves from off the bed, and began to put them back on. “Just forget that you saw that.”

After he finished putting the gloves back on, he turned back towards Cadence once more. “Tell me, Ghuleh. What exactly did you see?”

Cadence remained silent as she attempted to recall what she had seen.

“W-well, after I looked at the song, I heard someone screaming down the hall. I went to investigate, but everything around me looked different. It looked more like a castle.” She paused. “Even my reflection had changed. I looked much older. About thirty.” She wrung her hands as she recalled more and more. “I didn’t find out who had been screaming, because I was suddenly attacked.”

“By whom?” Papa asked, listening intently.

“Angels.” Cadence paused for a moment attempting to recall the names. “...Michael and… Raphael,” she said. “They tried to get me to join their side, along with this other girl named...Lavana... but I refused because doing so would have meant that I would’ve had to fight against you.”

Papa nodded his head. “Then what?”

“Well, a third angel appeared behind me… Gabriel, that’s who it was. He…” She shivered, recalling how the cold blade of the knife had felt on her neck. “...he slit my throat. With a dagger.”

Cadence lifted her head, meeting Emeritus’ eyes. “...I thought I was going to die, but then… Lucifer appeared to me. She-”

“They,” Papa stated, interrupting her.

Cadence blinked, confused. “Huh?”

“The devil is not a man nor a woman. They are genderless. It was only at that moment that Lucifer chose to appear to you as a female. They have appeared to us before in the past as a male as well.”

Emeritus stood up and reached over to the table beside the bed, picking something up. He handed Cadence back her mask, then stood up and made his way towards the door. When he opened it, Cadence could see that the door led to his study. Glancing back at Papa, she watched him smile and beckon her over with one finger.

The young acolyte hesitated for a moment before getting off the bed. After landing on the floor, she took her time tying her mask back on, and took a couple moments to finish adjusting it. Once she was done, she began to make her way over to Emeritus.

However, when she was about halfway to the door, something glowed brightly near her feet. Cadence glanced down. There was a bright, gold pentagram - about five feet in diameter - underneath her, right where she was standing.

Cadence stared at the pentagram for a moment, then raised her head and attempted to take a step forward. 

But she couldn’t move.

Cadence’s eyes widened. She tried to move her legs. They wouldn’t budge. She attempted to move an arm, her hand, a single finger, and her neck. Nothing. It was as if every single part of her body had been paralyzed.

“P-Papa!” She stared at the dark pope, pleading for help with her eyes. “I-I can’t move!”

But Emeritus made no effort to provide his assistance. He only continued to stand where he was. His smile had now disappeared from his face.

“Yes, that does appear to be the case.”

The dark pope turned on his heel and made his way over to one of his dresser drawers. He opened it and began to rummage through the contents inside. 

“I’m glad it worked,” he said.

Cadence’s eyes widened. “Wh-what?!” she exclaimed. “You mean you-”

The young acolyte watched as Papa took out a handkerchief and a tiny bottle of clear liquid, then turned and began walking towards her. In that moment she realized what Papa was holding - Consomnio.

She began to panic. Her mind screamed at her, telling her to get away, but she couldn’t move, no matter how hard she tried. The pentagram’s mysterious powers held her in place.

“I’m sorry, Cadence,” Papa said, pouring some of the liquid onto the handkerchief. “I told you to wait before looking at the song, but you disobeyed me. And now you know too much.” He tossed the bottle onto the bed after placing the cap back on, then placed his empty hand on the back of Cadence’s head. “I can’t have you fighting me while I do this.”

“Papa, please no…” she whispered, begging with him. “Please don’t drug me again…!”

“I’m sorry.”

Without warning, Emeritus placed the handkerchief over Cadence’s nose and mouth. The young acolyte tried to fight against the sickly sweet smell that wafted to her nose, but the struggle was in vain. It wasn’t long before her eyelids began to feel heavy.

Emeritus leaned forward as Cadence’s eyes began to close. “Sleep, Countess,” he whispered softly.

Only when Cadence’s eyes completely closed did the pentagram disappear. Immediately, Papa took the handkerchief away from her face, then caught her as she began to fall towards the floor. He stared at her for a moment in silence, brushing a few strands of hair away from her face. He kissed her temple before picking her up and carrying her towards the door without saying another word.


	6. Two Coffins

Cadence awoke from her drug-induced slumber and immediately began having a coughing fit. She felt dizzy and a little nauseous from the Consomnio, and her entire body still tingled a little bit from the effects of the pentagram Papa had used on her earlier. 

She rubbed her eyes with both hands when she finally stopped coughing, and soon opened them, blinking rapidly to make the blurriness go away. The room was dark, and it took a moment for her eyes to adjust. But when they finally did, it was clear to Cadence that she was not in the same room as before. It was yet another room that she had never been in before. The room was large, but empty. There was a small sink on the opposite wall, with a small circular mirror above it. The bed she was on was very simple - limited to a small pillow and a single bedsheet on a small mattress - and not very comfortable. A small, simple wooden table was next to the foot of the bed.

There were two doors, each at opposite ends of the room. The door on her left was small and made of wood. The right door, on the other hand, was much larger and appeared to be made of metal. There was a dim light coming from underneath it.

Cadence glanced around the room one more time before the realization hit her and her eyes widened. The room resembled a cell.

A plethora of questions swam through her mind as she stood up and began pacing aimlessly throughout the room. Why was she here? Who put her in this place? How long would she be here? A night? A few nights? A few weeks? A month? Was this supposed to be a punishment? What was Papa planning?

She suddenly became aware of the sound of voices coming from behind the large metal door, and soon made her way over towards it. She pressed her ear against the cold metal to try and hear them better. She couldn’t make out what they were saying, as they were speaking in hushed tones, but after a moment she suddenly identified Papa’s voice from among them. However, she could not identify who he was talking to.

Taking her ear off the door, Cadence tried to push the door open with her arms. It didn’t budge. She then pressed her back against the door and tried again. Same result.

Turning back towards the door, she slammed both fists against the door. The loud noise echoed in the chamber.

“Papa!” she yelled. She banged the door a couple more times with her right hand. “Papa, what’s going on?! Let me out!”

The voices stopped talking, and after a moment, Emeritus moved closer to the door and spoke to her.

“Cadence, step away from the door,” he commanded. “I’m coming in. Do not try to escape.”

Cadence hesitated for a moment before taking her hands off the door. She took a couple steps back as she heard some noises that seemed to resemble the sound of undoing a lock, and before long the door slowly swung open.

Emeritus entered the room with a serious expression on his face and a black box tucked underneath one arm. As he stared at Cadence, he pushed back against the door with his heel, closing it behind him with a loud “clank”.

“Wh-...what’s going on?” Cadence asked, watching as Papa placed the black box onto the wooden table. “W-why am I here?”

Emeritus stared down at the black box in silence for a bit before he gave a sigh and turned to look towards Cadence.

“Because you’re remembering,” he said.

Cadence blinked, confusion showing on her face. “...What?”

“Those hallucinations you’ve been having?” Papa gestured aimlessly with one hand as he spoke to her. “They’re not really hallucinations. They’re memories you’re recalling from previous lives.” The dark pope lowered his hand as he met Cadence’s eyes. “Those fights with the angels? Having your throat slit? Your eyes burned?” He took a step forward, causing Cadence to instinctively take a step back and fall onto the bed. “It all really happened.”

Cadence stared back at Emeritus, trying to comprehend everything that she was hearing.

Papa then sighed and turned away, heading over to the black box once more.

“Now it’s time for you to remember everything else that happened back then.” He turned his head towards her once more. “You need to know everything before we go on tour.”

“So… so why keep me here?” Cadence asked, finally finding the words to say.

“Many of these memories, but not all, mind you, are of traumatic or mournful experiences. Recalling them will have effects on your mental and emotional states. Remaining here will not only protect yourself but also others.”

“...How long will I have to stay here?”

But Emeritus did not answer her question. He turned back towards the box and reached into his suit jacket, producing the silver key needed to unlock the box. 

“The Sisters will bring you your meals and anything else you may need,” he said, unlocking the box. “The Ghouls and I will come here to help you recall events bit by bit.”  
Cadence watched as Papa opened the box, took out the object inside, and walked over towards her.

“Starting now,” he said.

The dark pope sat down on the bed next to Cadence, and handed her the object he was holding.

“Earlier you mentioned recalling someone named Lavana, correct?” he said. “Perhaps this will help you remember who she was.”

Cadence took the object without a word and examined it silently. It was a fancy black circlet dotted with purple rhinestones.

At first, nothing came to mind. However, after repeating the name a couple more times under her breath while observing the circlet, Cadence gasped and abruptly lifted her head.

“I...I think I-!” she started to speak, but abruptly stopped when she suddenly felt her head begin to pound.  
Cadence shut her eyes tightly as the ache grew, and only opened them after the pain had finally subsided. But when she did, she was no longer sitting on the bed in the cell. She was now standing in what appeared to be a massive castle throne room. Flaming torches illuminated the large room. A long, burgundy carpet went up to the throne, and large stain glass windows lined the walls.

However, as Cadence glanced around the room, her attention was brought to what appeared to be two coffins being displayed near the top of the stairs leading up to the throne - one regular sized, the other much smaller.

“You want to go up and see them, Mistress?” a voice next to her asked.

Cadence turned to see a figure wearing a black hooded robe next to her. In that instant, a name came to mind - Fire. She opened her mouth to say ‘Yes’, but no sound came out. When she placed a hand on her neck, she felt a bandage. Finding herself unable to say anything, she simply nodded her head in reply.

“Alright. Allow me to help you.” Fire placed his hands on her arm, then proceeded towards the coffins with her without saying another word. When she had finally arrived at the coffins, Fire took his hands off her, gave a bow, and walked away.

Cadence peered into the larger coffin first, which had the name “Lavana” painted onto it in gold lettering. Inside the coffin was a woman. She appeared to be approximately thirty years in age, had long curly red hair, and was dressed up in a long form-fitting gown that consisted of various shades of green. Her arms were folded across her chest, and resting underneath her hands was a small grucifix. Cadence also noticed that there was a bandage around the woman’s neck in the exact same place that Cadence had hers.

After staring at the woman in the coffin for a bit longer, Cadence peered into the smaller one beside it. Inside the second coffin was a baby boy; a little toddler dressed in a tiny black suit. A gold crown was resting on his head. The name on the coffin read “Asmodeus”.

Cadence felt a wave of sadness wash over her as she continued to stare at them. She sighed and lowered her head as she blinked rapidly in an attempt to prevent herself from crying. These two people before her - who she knew, somehow - were now trapped in a deep sleep from which they could never hope to wake up from.

“Y-Your Unholiness, wait! Please!”

Cadence abruptly turned towards the far left of the room upon hearing the shout just in time to see a man wearing a black and red chasuble covered in upside down crosses storm out the door, a fluffy siamese close beside him. The two of them were being followed behind by another man wearing a black priest robe and an american shorthair. 

Somehow, Cadence knew that the man wearing the black and red chasuble was Papa. She watched as the man wearing the black priest robe disappeared with him behind the set of double doors, heading into the hallway. Immediately after the doors had closed, Cadence went down the steps and raced after them as quickly as she could without falling due to her heeled shoes.

She followed the sound of the priest’s voice until she arrived at a corner and finally stopped to listen to the conversation. Cautiously, she peered around the stone wall to watch the two men, who both had their backs facing her as they continued walking.

The priest was still talking.

“...please, if you’d just listen to me! I really do think-!”

Without warning, Emeritus abruptly stopped in his tracks, catching the priest by surprise. At that moment, Cadence realized that the dark pope now looked completely different. He appeared to be in his mid thirties. There was no mitre on his head. His long black hair went past his shoulders. Even his face paint had changed - the color white still covered the majority of his face, but there was now black around his eyes, on the tip of his nose, and all around his mouth, giving the illusion that the dark pope was smiling even though he was actually scowling.

“Father Niels!” Papa yelled, turning to face the priest. “For the hundredth time, everything is not going to be alright!” He raised his arms and gave a frustrated sigh. “What’s the use of having any hope when all of it is currently gone?!” And with that, the dark pope turned back around and stormed down the hall once more, leaving the priest alone.

Cadence hesitated for a moment, then held her breath as she stepped out from behind her hiding place and walked over to Niels. The priest turned upon hearing her footsteps and gave her a warm smile.

“O-oh, Miss Elizabeth.” He spoke quietly as he acknowledged her, giving her a quick bow at the same time. The shorthair lifted its head to look up at her and meowed as if to say “Hello”.

“I, uh… I’m sorry about… the loss.” Niels was a rather shy and awkward priest whenever he wasn’t giving sermons. It was common for him to stutter and pause often. “I-I know you and Lavana were... very close.” He then lowered his head, and his hands balled up into fists. “I just can’t believe that those three would do something like this! Lavana wouldn’t hurt a fly, a-and little Asmodeus was just…!” 

The priest paused, then exhaled to calm himself down. He lifted his head and met Cadence’s eyes.  
“S-sorry.” Niels shuffled momentarily in his spot. “I’m probably only making you feel worse by talking about it...” 

He sighed again. “But… but I think I speak for all of us… when I say this,” he said. “None of us thought… that you would survive. But you did, and…” A smile once again reappeared on his face. “...And we’re all very grateful for that.”

Cadence smiled at Niels and nodded her head to say “Thank you”. She then turned in the direction she had seen Papa go, and after a moment hurried off in that direction without waiting for Niels to say another word.

She glanced into all of the rooms around her as she walked down the hallway, but found no signs of Emeritus anywhere. He wasn’t even in his office. 

But Annali was. She was curled up on the floor in front of the fireplace. When Cadence stepped into the room, the siamese did not even bother to lift its head.

“If you’re looking for Emeritus, he isn’t here,” she said. “He went off to pray. Where at, I do not know. He didn’t tell me.”

Cadence, a look of disappointment present on her face, stared at Annali for a moment before she turned and headed out of the room and back into the hall. She continued to glance into every room she passed by, but still found no signs of the dark pope anywhere.

But just as she was beginning to give up hope, she noticed that the door to one of the prayer rooms was open slightly, and she could hear quiet talking coming from inside the room. Cautiously, she crept over to the door and slowly pushed it open, attempting to remain silent. Once she got into the room, she silently closed the door behind her, hid behind one of the stone pillars that went all the way from the floor to the ceiling, and peered around it.

Emeritus was muttering to himself as he lit the candle he was holding and placed it down on the table in front of him. Along with the candle he put down, there were already five other lit candles on the table with it.

Cadence watched as Emeritus stared at the six candles in silence for a bit before he raised his head, took a deep breath…

...and, without warning, began to scream.

“LUCIFEEER!” he shouted, anguish clearly present in his voice. “Show yourself this instant!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, in case you couldn't figure it out, this is basically a younger Papa 1.


	7. Stricken

“I said right now! Do you hear me?!”

Papa’s clenched his hands tightly and shook with anger as he continued waiting for a response that never seemed to come.

Then, suddenly, a tiny red spark flickered near the large grucifix hanging on the wall in front of Emeritus. 

“There you are!” the dark pope yelled. “I know you're listening! Show yourself!”

Cadence shivered as the temperature in the room seemed to drop, but continued to watch the scene in front of her. The flames on the candles quivered and trembled as a roaring wind started up. When it suddenly grew stronger, the candles abruptly went out, leaving the entire room pitch black.

Then, just a couple seconds later, the candles relit themselves. Now, however, Emeritus was kneeling with one knee on the floor with his head lowered before a person who hadn’t been there moments ago. 

Awed, Cadence held her breath as she stared at the new arrival. They appeared to be androgynous - the body was that of a male but the face was rather feminine in nature. The long hair was platinum blonde and slicked back. But the most striking thing about the person were their eyes - a familiar bright red-orange color.

“Emeritus.” The devil spoke to Papa as they stared down at him with a stoic expression. This time, they were dressed in a well-tailored black and white suit as opposed to the fancy dress they had worn with the previous form.

“My lord,” Papa responded. He waited for a moment before daring to raise his head and meet Lucifer’s eyes.

The devil pursed their lips, observing the dark pope’s face as silence fell between them for a few seconds.  
“I take it by your tone and those demanding outbursts that you are displeased with me.”

“Displeased?” Papa repeated. “Displeased?!” Now the dark pope dared to stand up; his hands balling up into fists as he did so. “I'm more than displeased! I am furious with you right now!”

The devil didn't even blink when Emeritus pointed his finger at them. “Yes, I can see that quite clearly,” they said.

“How in the name of all that's unholy could you let them die?!” Papa yelled, lowering his arm. He was beginning to shake with anger. “I thought you wanted the antichrist to be born?!”

The devil sighed and closed their eyes for a moment. Afterwards, they shrugged and shook their head.

“I did,” Lucifer answer, reopening their eyes. They lowered their arms and continued to stare at Emeritus. “...But, after a bit of time had passed since all of this was put into motion, I unfortunately realized that it wasn't the right time to let that thing be born.” They sighed, then rain their fingers through their platinum hair. “And the woman had already fulfilled her purpose by then anyway.” A pause, and then a smirk almost seemed to tug at the devil’s lips. “Besides, whats the use of crying over that woman? We can always just get a new prime mover elsewhere.”

Emeritus’ eyes widened, and he clenched his hands tighter.

“That thing?” he repeated. He was shaking even more wildly now. “That thing?!” The dark pope stamped his foot on the ground as he took a step towards Lucifer, who, Cadence now noticed, was only a few inches taller than him. “‘That thing’ was my son! And ‘the woman’ my wife!” Emeritus pointed a gloved finger at them again, tears now beginning to form in his eyes. He seemed to be struggling to prevent himself from crying. “You gave them to me and then took them away!”

Again, the devil did not even flinch when Papa pointed at them again. They watched as Papa lowered his hand and turned away from them.

“You still have your Ghouls,” Lucifer said after a moment, once again being the first to break the silence. “And your servants. And your civilians. And your priests. And your castle. And your magic.” A smile suddenly appeared on their face. “And Elizabeth.” 

“What good is she?!”

A silent gasp left Cadence and her eyes widened with shock. She was horrified by Emeritus’ reply. 

As she stared, Lucifer remained silent, and after a moment seemed to glance in her direction, as if they knew she was there, watching and listening.

“What’s wrong with her?” they asked, looking back in Papa’s direction.

But Cadence no longer wanted to stick around to hear what Emeritus had to say about her. Silently, she made her way over towards the door, opened it quietly, and hurried out of the prayer room. She walked a short distance down the hall before she stopped and placed her back against the wall.

A giant wave of emotions was crashing through her as she attempted to process everything she had just seen and heard. She felt angry, saddened, confused, and betrayed.

Looking down at herself, she placed a hand on the bandage that was around her neck, and suddenly felt as if it would have been better if she had died. She fell to the floor as tears began to stream out of her eyes. She buried her head in her hands as silent sobs left her.

“...Well?”

Cadence opened her eyes and lifted her head slightly upon hearing Papa’s voice, and suddenly found herself back in the cell. She lowered her hands as she took slow breaths to calm herself and process everything she had just witnessed. Her eyes, however, were still wide with shock.

“H-...how?” she asked as Papa took the circlet out of her hands and placed it back into the black box.

The dark pope locked the box, then placed the key back into his pocket as he turned his head to look at her. “How what, Ghuleh?” he asked.

Cadence’s hands balled up into fists. When she turned to look at Papa, there was a mixed look of sadness and rage on her face.

“How could you say that about me?!” she yelled, standing up. The anger in her eyes frightened Emeritus, and he backed away from her, but not very far. 

“What good am I? What good am I?!” She reached out and swiped the pillow from off the bed. “How could you?!” she yelled, hitting the dark pope with it as hard as she could bring herself to.

Emeritus covered his face with one arm to protect his face from the pillow as Cadence brought it down on him. She hit him a few more times, repeating the same question over and over as tears streamed down her face while she sobbed. When she stopped to catch her breath, Papa lowered his arm and met her eyes.

“Cadence, please! I was a different man back then!”

“I served you loyally every time you needed me!” Cadence yelled, more memories beginning to run through her mind. “I never refused anything! I handled all the disobedient citizens! I did all I was supposed to, and yet…!” She paused, then raised the pillow in an attempt to strike Emeritus once more.

But before Cadence could bring down the pillow, Papa held up his free hand, stopping the movements of the young acolyte’s arms with his magic. As he held her back, the dark pope stared at Cadence with a pleading expression.

“Cadence, I-” He started to speak, but soon stopped himself and thought about his answer as he backed up a few steps towards the metal door.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I was so stricken with grief. I had no idea that you had followed me in there.” He reached the door, and soon pushed Cadence back so that she landed on the bed. “But Lucifer… when they have a plan, they stop at nothing to put in motion. And if something goes wrong with that plan, they change it around completely in the most unexpected ways.”

As Papa exited the room and entered the hallway, he heard Cadence collapse onto the bed and sob into the sheets. He watched her cry as he closed the door, then turned away after he had finally locked it again. 

“Ghuleh…” Papa whispered. “I'm so sorry.” He began to slowly trudge down the dim hallway, his head lowered. “I wish it didn’t have to be this way.”

Located on Cadence’s cell door was a sign. It read:

“Name: Cadence 

Sentence: To remain in solitary confinement until further notice.

Only those with the permission of the clergy may enter. Anyone else shall be severely punished.”


	8. First Encounter

The night he had first seen her. He could still remember it very clearly, as if it had happened the night before.

But it had really been decades… no, centuries ago. Back then, he had been a young man of just nineteen years of age.

He remembered how the devil had appeared to him on that night. They had taken on the form of a woman - tall, medium-length black hair that was loosely curled at the ends, the same red-orange eyes that swirled as if they were filled with blazing flames. Almost all of their skin had been pale, except for the right half of their face, which had been completely white. A burgundy robe lined with gold covered their body, reaching all the way to the floor.

“Emeritus,” they had said, speaking in a commanding tone. “Come here.”

Naturally, he had obeyed the command - he didn't exactly have a choice - walking over until he was right by Lucifer’s side. The devil had turned with him, making note of each and every one of his movements, no matter how subtle. Body language could give a lot away, and he knew that if he showed even the slightest hint of disinterest or disrespect, he would have to pay for it.

“I have something for you,” the devil said, breaking the silence once again. “Would you like to see?”

“Yes, my lord,” he had answered immediately with a nod of his head.

The expression on Lucifer’s face hadn’t changed. They had stared at him for a moment before turned towards the far end of the room, which had been shrouded in shadows.

“You two, come here,” they said, beckoning forward with one hand.

He had watched as two thirteen year old girls stepped out of the shadows on command. They had walked side-by-side at the same slow place towards where he and the devil were standing.

“Stop,” Lucifer commanded, holding up their hand. The girls immediately obeyed and stopped dead in their tracks.

He had stared at the two girls with an immense amount of curiosity. Who were these girls? Why had Lucifer brought them to him?

“...Well?” The devil had turned to look at him as they spoke, awaiting his answer. “Do you like them?”

He had immediately responded “Y-yes, my lord. They’re…” He had taken a moment to search for the right word to say. Eventually, he had finally settled on the word “...beautiful.”

He had taken a couple moments to observe each of the girls before he’d dared to raise his head to meet the devil’s eyes. “...Did you create them?” he had asked.

The devil had silently nodded their head in reply.

“The same way you created me? Manifested from the shadows and eons of collected mortal and venial sins?”

Another nod.

“So…” He turned his head towards the girls again. “Are they my sisters?”

He became surprised when the devil suddenly gave a laugh at the question he had asked.

“By the black pits, they are most certainly not!” The devil gave another laugh before their face had become serious again. “You, Emeritus, are the only one I’ll ever consider to be one of my progeny.”

He turned back towards the girls again and finally walked up to them. At that moment, he had noticed something about them that was rather peculiar - their eyes, which were a dull grey and almost lifeless. They just stared forward, focused on nothing at all. They didn't even blink.

“They’re still under my spell,” the devil explained to him. “Right now, they cannot see, feel, or hear anything that is around them. Only after I snap my fingers will they gain free will and be able to function without my assistance.”  
Lucifer then walked up to the girl on the right, who had long red hair and was wearing a green dress. They placed one hand on her shoulder.

“This one is Lavana.” The devil brushed a few strands of hair out of the girl’s face, ensuring that she looked pristine and perfect. “She is to give birth to the antichrist.”

His eyes had widened with shock at that moment, but it was only because back then he was not fully aware of the devil’s true plans. “Y-you mean she's… pregnant?” he had asked. “Already? At such a young age?”

“Not yet,” the devil replied. At that moment, he had noticed a twinkle in their eyes as they spoke to him with a smirk on his face. 

He then watched as Lucifer walked over to the girl on the left, who had long brown hair and was wearing a black and purple gown.

“And this one is Elizabeth. She is to provide her assistance with spreading corruption through any means necessary.”

He had become a little confused by Lucifer’s remark. “Forgive me, my lord,” he had said. “But that doesn't really seem like much. Anyone can manage to spread even a little corruption through their work.”

“That may be true, but give her time, Emeritus,” the devil replied, smiling at him. “I'll have you know that she is full of potential.”

He just nodded his head in reply. It was then that the devil had returned to their place right beside him and turned towards the girls again.

“Now then, are you ready to free them from the spell and put this plan into motion?” they had asked.

“Yes, my lord,” he answered immediately, once more with a nod of his head.

It was then that Lucifer had raised their left hand and snapped their fingers. The loud noise echoed in the large room. The two girls came to life right on cue, reacting as if they had been startled by the noise. They blinked a few times, then looked down at themselves, turning their hands over and over while testing their fingers. Then they turned and looked at each other, neither of them saying a word even though their mouths were slightly agape.

It wasn’t until Elizabeth had finally turned towards him that he had noticed that something had changed. His eyes widened when their eyes met and he noticed what it was.

“Lavender...eyes…” he murmured, taking a couple steps closer to her. He had felt himself becoming entranced by the color of Elizabeth’s eyes. They were a rather beautiful color. 

When he had finally brought himself to look away from her eyes, he finally noticed that Elizabeth appeared to be a little frightened. Regardless, he had smiled warmly at her.

“Hello there,” he said, nodding his head.

Elizabeth had stuttered when she had tried to respond. He hadn't been sure what was frightening her more - his appearance, or the fact that she was suddenly finding herself in a new, unfamiliar place.

“H-h-...hello.” She spoke timidly, with her voice hushed to barely above a whisper.

His expression changed to one of concern. “What’s the matter?” he had asked. “Am I frightening you?”

She shook her head.

“N-no, not at all. I just…” She paused. “I don’t know where I am…”

She became surprised when he had suddenly reached out and taken her hand. Now it seemed to be her turn to become entranced by his appearance.

He continued to smile at her. “You’re in Opus,” he had said. “Your new home.”

She continued to stare at him for a bit before her eyes wandered down to their hands.

“...Home…” she murmured. A smile then appeared on her face. “...home…” She raised her head and met his eyes again. “...That's a nice word, isn’t it?”

They stared at each other in an awkward silence for what felt to him like an eternity, neither one of them attempting to leave the other’s grasp. He had been fine with it, though, and he was sure that she had been too.

But then Lucifer clapped their hands, causing him to break his gaze away from her and turn towards his dark lord.

“Lavana,” the devil said, eyes focused on him and not the red-headed girl beside them whom they were speaking to. She stared up at Lucifer with eyes he finally noticed had suddenly turned from grey to hazel. “I would like to introduce to you my son, Emeritus.” 

A smile suddenly appeared on Lucifer’s face, which had surprised him. The devil hardly ever smiled.

“You are to be engaged to him and give birth to the antichrist.”

At that, his eyes had widened, and he abruptly let go of Elizabeth’s hand. “Wh-... what?” he asked, struggling to make the words come out of his mouth as the sentence repeated itself in his mind.

“You heard me,” the devil said to him. “You are to be engaged to her. She’s your fiancee.”

He and Lavana stared at each other in the silence that had fallen, bewilderment clearly present on both their faces.

“Well, go on,” Lucifer said impatiently, turning to look at Lavana. “Go over to him.”

Lavana seemed to hesitate for a moment before she finally walked over to him at a slow pace. It was clear to him that she was shy as well.

“H-...hello, Emeritus,” she said, giving him a smile.

He was just trying to be courteous. All he had done was say hello back, then reach out and kiss the back of her hand. It was just meant to be a kind gesture. But when he had glanced back at Elizabeth after doing so, he could clearly see the sadness and disappointment in her eyes.

Those eyes…

...He could never forget that look he had seen in them.

It was one of having your heart broken without realizing that you were in love at first sight in the first place.

***

Papa finally returned to the door which led to his study after what had seemed to him like a very long, miserable trek. Silently, he unlocked the door and stepped inside.

Without even bothering to close the door behind him, he walked over to the fireplace and placed the black box back onto the shelf where he always kept it. He stared at it in silence for a moment, then bent down and stirred up the embers so that the flames once more roared to life in the fireplace. Afterwards, he turned and headed over to his desk. 

The dark pope sat down in his seat and began to sort through some of the papers on his desk; some already filled out, others waiting to be signed. He picked up his pen and placed the tip on the piece of paper. But he couldn’t bring himself to sign it. No matter what he tried to do, he kept thinking back to what had happened earlier in Cadence’s cell.

He knew he should have waited. He knew he should have shown her a happier memory first. But those were so few and far between, and the damage was already done.  
He put his pen back down and rested his elbows on the desk. He rubbed his forehead with one hand, trying to get rid of the ache he was beginning to feel.

“So… I’m guessing that it didn't go so well.”

Papa lifted his head up upon hearing the voice and glanced towards the door. There, standing in the doorway, was a Ghoul. He glanced at the Ghoul’s suit and noticed the highlighted upright triangle. It was Alpha’s symbol, but he could tell by the voice that it wasn't Alpha who was standing there. Alpha didn't have bright green eyes.

“What happened?” the Ghoul asked, stepping into the room without waiting for Papa’s permission.

But Papa did not yell at the Ghoul. This one was different from all the others. He was not required to wait for his permission to do things. The dark pope sighed and sat back in his chair.

“I won’t be able to bring myself to face her,” Emeritus said. “Not after what just happened.”

He moved a couple papers so they were out of his way, still casting his eyes downward. After a bit of shuffling and stacking, he finally raised his head and made eye contact with the Ghoul.

“Please, tonight, I want you to talk with her for me. Give her some company. She needs it.”


	9. A Special Case

Cadence lay on the mattress, her body curled up in a ball underneath the covers as she continued staring at the blank wall in front of her. The tears she had been crying earlier were still drying on her face, but her mask was still on her face. She wanted to continue crying as the memories she had received continued to replay themselves over and over in her mind, but she could no longer do so for she had run out of tears.

The chimes could not be heard in her cell, so she never knew what time it was. She could only guess that it was sometime after eighteen o’clock, as a Sister had arrived earlier with a tray that was supposed to be her evening meal. She had drank the glass of water, but she had not touched any of the food. She didn’t feel like eating anything. There were books for her to read by the end of the bed, but she wasn’t in the mood to read either. She just wanted to be left alone.

Her wishes, however, were not granted when she heard a few quick knocks on the door, and before long the person on the other side unlocked and opened it. She heard footsteps as a Sister of Sin entered the room with a candle in hand.

The sister stared at her for a moment before walking over to the tray of food Cadence had left on the floor by her bed.

“...You didn’t eat anything?” the sister said, worry filling her voice.

“I’m not hungry,” Cadence mumbled in reply, still facing the wall. “Just take it.”

The sister looked up from the tray and stared back at Cadence. “...You sure?” she asked. “Papa would at least want you to eat something.”

Cadence only remained silent. Her hands gripped the bed sheets a little tighter. After a moment, she finally spoke again.

“...Cirice?” she said, addressing the Sister of Sin by name. “...What time is it?”

“It’s about five minutes after nineteen.”

Cadence sighed. Another hour. It had felt like nights had passed since she had first found herself in the cell, yet it had really been only about six hours.

“...Anything else you want, Ms. Cadence?” Cirice asked. For some reason, Cadence noticed that Cirice always felt the need to address her and the other acolytes formally even though sisters and acolytes weren’t actually that far apart in terms of rank.

Cadence hesitated for a moment before she finally turned to face Cirice.

“...Could you leave that candle here?” she asked, speaking in a hushed tone. The cell was quite dark without its light, for there were no lights anywhere in the actual cell.

Cirice glanced at the candle she was holding before she glanced back at Cadence and nodded her head. 

“Sure.”

The Sister placed the candle on the small bedside table, then bent down and picked up the tray. After she reached the door, she cast another worried glance at Cadence for a final time before she opened the door once more and carried the tray out of the room.

Cadence sighed and sat up after she heard Cirice relock the door. She waited a couple moments before she finally got off the bed and walked over to the stack of books that had been left for her. Now that she actually had a decent amount of light in the cell, she might as well take a look at them, especially since she had nothing else to do except stare at the walls. She picked up each book one at a time, trying to find one that piqued her interest.

It was quite obvious from the start that, based on the types of books that were in the pile, that Papa had picked them out. Many of the titles and/or covers were rather… suggestive, to say the least. Cadence laughed, but only for a moment. Of course someone with the nickname “The One Lascivious” would read such erotic fiction. She quickly put them back into the pile and continued to search for books that were more to her liking.

She’d found a couple mystery novels, but the cases involved murders, and with the bloody memories of her first life still fresh in her mind she didn’t exactly want to read about that kind of stuff right now. After a bit more searching, she finally settled on a realistic fiction novel about a teenage amatuer photographer who was trying to make enough money for her family.

She enjoyed the book, but after reading it for a bit, Cadence began to draw some parallels between the main character and her life before she became an acolyte. At that moment, she found herself thinking about Esther and her family’s music store. 

Cadence stared at the words on the pages, suddenly lost in thought. How was her sister doing at Stretto’s Symphony without her? Was she making enough money for herself to pay the rent? Was the store even still open? Had anyone else in Meliora even noticed that she had disappeared?

With a sigh, she folded the corner of the page she was on, closed the book, and placed it back onto the table beside the pile of unread books before lying back down on the mattress. She would get back to reading later.

She tried to close her eyes in order to get some sleep. However, every time she tried to do so, images of knives, blood, coffins, angels, and more from her previous life flashed through her mind. Everything she saw frightened her, but every time she opened her eyes she was quickly comforted by the soft glow of the candle which illuminated the room.

“...How long will I have to be here?” she mumbled to herself, staring up at the ceiling. “I hope it’s not very long. Don’t we have to go on tour soon?”

Papa had been telling her that in two weeks, on September fifteenth - which was a week after her birthnight - they would be going on tour to perform. However, he hadn’t exactly told her where they would be performing. Sometimes, when Papa had been talking about the subject with another member of the clergy, she had overheard the dark pope mumble something about “another realm”. What did he mean by that, Cadence wondered.

She quieted herself when she suddenly heard the sound of footsteps coming closer to her cell. Cadence softly exhaled through her nose and closed her eyes as the footsteps ceased. In the silence that had fallen, she waited for the knocking to sound. After a moment of what seemed to Cadence like hesitation, she heard three quick knocks on the other side. Then the person behind the door spoke.

“...H-hello?”

Cadence opened her eyes and sat up. This was a new voice. A person she hadn’t met before.

“May I come in?”

The young acolyte became surprised by the newcomer’s question. Usually, before someone entered her cell, they would knock and announce that they were going to enter. No one asked for permission before entering. She wasn’t sure what to think.

“I-I don’t recognize your voice,” she said. “...Who are you?”

“I’m a Ghoul,” came the reply. “We haven’t met yet...until now, at least.”

Cadence thought in silence for a moment, contemplating her response, before speaking up again.  
“...O-okay, yeah, sure,” she said. “Come in.”

There seemed to be another moment of hesitation on the other side before Cadence finally heard the door unlock. It opened slowly, almost cautiously, and before long the Ghoul had made his way into the room.

“Hi!” The Ghoul smiled at her as he shut the door behind him.

Cadence stared at the Ghoul who was now in the room with her. The very first thing she noticed as he slowly walked closer to her was that he appeared to be the exact same height as Papa. His voice also sounded like Papa’s, but was slightly higher in pitch and was missing the accent. “...H-hi,” she responded, trying to be polite.

The Ghoul glanced down at the bed Cadence was sitting on before meeting her eyes again. “May I sit down?”

“Oh! Uh, sure.” Cadence moved over a little to the right in order to make room.

“Thank you.” The Ghoul gave a content sigh and rubbed his hands together for a moment as he sat down beside her. After a moment of silence, he turned to face her. “So you’re Cadence, huh?”

The young acolyte nodded her head in response, but said nothing.

“I wasn’t present for your induction ritual, but Papa has told me a lot about you.”

“Has he now?” Cadence remarked, turning her head away from the Ghoul. She had calmed down a bit since earlier, but she was still quite upset with the dark pope at the moment.

The Ghoul blinked. “What’s with the tone?” he asked.

Cadence gave a short laugh and turned back towards him. “Well, now that I know how he really feels about me, I don’t see how-” She abruptly ceased talking and her eyes widened. The Ghoul had his hands on the top and bottom of his silver mask and was proceeding to remove it. “Woah woah woah! What are you doing?! Don’t take off your mask!”

The Ghoul stopped, lowered his hands, and turned towards her again. “Why?” he asked. But he didn’t appear to be confused.

“B-because it’s against the rules!” Cadence answered. “Acolytes aren’t supposed to remove their masks when in the presence of other members of the clergy!” None of the Ghouls had ever removed their masks in her presence. Not even Earth, whom she spent every night with.

The Ghoul stared at Cadence for a bit, then nodded his head.

“Yes, that is true,” he said. He then smiled and turned away from her, facing the wall in front of them. “But I’m what you might call a bit of a… special case.” Without warning, he placed his hands back on his mask and tore it off in one swift motion.

Cadence immediately closed her eyes and turned her head to look away. The Ghoul chuckled upon seeing her reaction and held out one hand as if to request a handshake.

“I’m Special,” he said.

“Yes, you’ve made it quite obvious that you think you are,” Cadence replied.

The Ghoul chuckled again and shook his head. 

“No, that’s my name,” he said. “Special.”

Cadence opened her eyes, but still did not turn to look at him. “Oh…” was all she said in reply.

Special stared at her for a bit, then spoke.

“...You can turn around and look at me, you know.”

Cadence hesitated. “You sure?” she asked. “You won’t tell anyone?”

“It’ll be our little secret. My lips are sealed. I promise.”

A sigh left Cadence as she hesitated once more. “O-okay,” she said, lowering her hood. Her hands went up to her mask, and she soon proceeded to untie and remove it. “I… I trust that you’ll keep your word.” She took off her mask, then slowly turned to face Special again. When she finally did her eyes widened slightly. The young acolyte had expected to see some sort of non-human, demon-like features on his face, but to her surprise there were none. He looked… normal.

It was then that Cadence noticed Special’s eyes. Both of them were bright green - the exact same shade as Emeritus’ left eye.

Special smiled as he stared back at her. “Wow, I really like your eyes.”

Cadence blushed slightly and averted her eyes. “Th-thank you…” she said. “I-I’ve been told that I'm the only one in Meliora with eyes this color.”

“I'll bet that's made you pretty popular, then.”

Cadence’s smile slowly disappeared as she thought back to how her life had been before she became an acolyte. She shook her head in reply.

Special’s smile soon disappeared as well. “...No?”  
Cadence sighed and lowered her head, staring at her hands which were in her lap.

“...I think ‘infamous’ is the better word,” she said. “My sister Esther tried to figure out the reason behind my unusual eye color. For a while my eyes were studied by scientists. They thought that it was a genetic defect but, after conducting their tests, it turned out to be completely normal.” She paused. “Afterwards, word got out to the other citizens, and it wasn't long before I began getting judged. At the start, people would call me names, and some chose to beat me up. Eventually I didn't feel safe at all and isolated myself in our apartment dwelling.”

Special’s eyes were wide and his mouth hung open as he listened to Cadence talk.

“What few friends I had either left me, or their parents forbade them from going anywhere near me.” Another pause. “But… but I wasn’t alone for very long,” she said.

Special tilted his head slightly to the side. “Why’s that?” he asked.

A small smile appeared on Cadence’s face. “Because… because one night, after I had been beaten up and left on the sidewalk… Papa found me.” She stared at her hands for a moment before continuing. “He would visit me, take care of me, and pretty soon we had formed a very close bond with each other, even though he never gave me permission to look at him.” 

The young acolyte closed her eyes and sighed as her smile widened. “...He was there for me when no one else was.” She remained in silence as she recalled the good memories of her times with the dark pope before she became an acolyte, but before long the memory of him talking to Lucifer about her came back. She opened her eyes as her smile disappeared once more. “But now…” Her voice trailed off.

Special stared at Cadence for a moment before speaking up. 

“He cares about you, you know,” he said. “A lot.”

Cadence lifted her head and met Special’s eyes. She hesitated for a moment before asking her question.

“...Does… does he love me?” she asked.

Special seemed to be caught off guard by Cadence’s question, and a look of surprise played across his face. “...You don’t know?”

Cadence sighed. “I mean… sometimes it seems like he does, and other times it doesn’t. I just can’t tell with him.”

The Ghoul remained silent, possibly contemplating how to answer, before speaking again. But what he said next was not the answer to Cadence’s question.

“...Cadence, has anyone told you yet about... regeneration?” he asked. When Cadence shook her head in reply, he continued.

“Papa can’t die… completely. If he grows old or gets fatally injured, he gains a new physical form. But with that new body also comes a different persona. No two Papas are exactly the same.” He paused again. “Not only that, but every time Papa regenerates, everyone and everything changes with him. Each regeneration is a new lifetime for us.”

“But why don't I remember anything from those previous lives?” Cadence asked.

“Our memories of the previous life get erased and replaced with false memories of the next,” Special answered. He then turned towards Cadence again and met her eyes. “But don't worry. Every visit from Papa really did happen. Those were not fake memories.”

“...Is there any way to stop all of that from happening?” Cadence asked. “Is it at all possible to keep your previous appearance and all of your memories?”

Special remained silent for a moment, then sighed.

“Yes, but that is classified information right now,” he answered.

Cadence nodded her head, beginning to understand what Special was saying. Before long, silence had fallen between them.

Special looked down at his left arm and rolled up a part of his sleeve. There was a watch on his wrist. After checking the time, he sighed and lifted his head to look at Cadence once more.

“Well… I have to go now, unfortunately,” he said.

Cadence furrowed her brow. “You… can’t stay?” she asked. She was beginning to enjoy his company.

The Ghoul shook his head and picked up his silver mask. “I don’t have the permission of the clergy to be down here. If they find me here, I’ll be punished.” 

He put his mask back on, adjusting it for a moment, then stood up. He turned to face Cadence and smiled at her.

“I’ll come back tomorrow,” he said. He made an ‘X’ symbol over his heart. “I promise.”

When Special turned and began to walk towards the large metal door, Cadence stood up. She did not move when the Ghoul reached the door, opened it, then turned to look back at her again.

“It was nice meeting you, Cadence,” he said.

It was then that Cadence realized that the door was open and, as Special proceeded to exit the room, she made a dash for the door as well. But just as she reached it, the metal door was shut, a low sound echoing in the cell when it closed.

“Special!” Cadence yelled, banging on the door once with both hands.

“I-I’m… I’m sorry, Cadence,” the Ghoul replied, locking the door. “I may be a special case, but there are some rules that even I must follow.”

Cadence hung her head, causing her forehead to rest against the cold metal as she listened to the sound of Special’s footsteps growing quieter as he walked farther and farther away from her cell. After a moment, when she could no longer hear the Ghoul’s footsteps, she finally pulled away and turned towards her bed. The candle Cirice had left for her on the table was still burning brightly despite how short it had become. Slowly, the young acolyte walked over to it, blew out the tiny flame, then took off her shoes and retired for the night.


	10. Taste of Vanilla

Special walked down the hallway with a purposeful stride, his hands clenched into fists. Yes, it was getting to be late into the night, but this just couldn’t wait. Arriving at the door to Emeritus’ study, he gripped the doorknob, and without warning threw the door open.

“Papa!” he yelled, calling for the dark pope. But when the Ghoul stormed into the room, only Annali greeted him.

“He’s in his room,” the siamese said, flicking her tail once.

Special closed the front door, then turned and headed over towards the door to Papa’s room. He tried to turn the knob, but the door was locked. Frustrated, he banged on the door a couple times. “Papa, open up! We need to talk!”

There was silence on the other side for a moment before Papa made his reply.

“...Are you sure you want to do that?” he asked. Special was certain that the dark pope was smirking.

“Yes,” the Ghoul replied, becoming impatient. “Now, please.” He glanced at the clock on the wall and folded his arms across his chest.

There was more silence on Papa’s side of the door for a bit longer before the dark pope sighed and spoke again.  
“Alright,” Papa said. “If you say so, dear Special.”

Special waited a couple more moments before he finally heard Papa’s footsteps coming closer to the door. When the door opened, he smiled and turned towards it. But when his eyes fell on Emeritus, his smile disappeared and as his eyes widened he yelped, turning away. “Are you serious, Emeritus?!” he shouted.

Papa smirked and leaned against the doorway. “You were the one who wanted to talk right now,” he replied, raking his fingers through his hair.

“You could’ve at least waited until you were decent!”

The dark pope glanced down at himself, then chuckled as he raised his head to look back at Special, who still had his back facing him. “Special,” he laughed. “Relax. It’s not like I’m na-”

“Please!” Special’s hands clenched into fists. “Just. Put. A shirt. On. Now.”

Papa stared at the Ghoul for a moment before he sighed and turned back towards his room. “Alright.”

Special breathed a sigh of relief after Papa left the room. While he waited for the dark pope to return, the Ghoul allowed his eyes to aimlessly wander around the room. He observed the paintings, then the patterns on the carpeting, and finally the countless number of books on the shelves before Emeritus returned. But when the Ghoul turned around, he took one look at the dark pope and groaned.

“Button it up!” he yelled.

Again, Emeritus laughed, amused by Special’s reactions. With a wide grin on his face, he placed a hand on his chest and slowly trailed it down along the exposed skin.

“For Lucifer’s sake, Papa, cut that out!” Special yelled, one hand smacking his forehead. “I did not come here to-”

“I know.” Papa laughed a third time. “I just wanted to mess with you for a moment.” Smiling, he lowered his hand and stepped away from the door. But after a moment, he furrowed his brow and his smile seemed to disappear. “...Well? How is she?”

Special sighed. “She… she seems to be doing alright. She did try to escape as I was leaving, though.”

Papa nodded, but there was something about Special’s tone that made him feel a little uneasy, although he didn't outwardly show it. “...And?”

Without warning, the expression behind the Ghoul’s mask became one of anger once more. His hands once again balled up into fists as he took a step towards Emeritus.

“Why haven't you told her?!” Special demanded.  
The question surprised Papa. “Wh-what?” he asked, shaking his head.

Special grew even more visibly frustrated. He took another step forward. “You’ve told me how you feel about her. You've had all this time to confess to her, and yet you haven't done anything!” 

"B-But I told her that I have feelings for her..."

"That could mean anything!" Special threw his hands up into the air. “Cadence doesn't know what to think! You’re confusing her! Why are you holding back?!”

Emeritus blinked, trying to comprehend what Special was telling him. “She’s…” His eyes then widened and he turned away from Special, one hand resting on his chest over his heart. “Oh no…”

“You have to tell her, Emeritus!” Special continued. “She must know how you feel about her. Besides, she's already confessed!”

“I-I…” The dark pope blinked rapidly and breathed deeply as he attempted to keep his emotions under control. “I… I can’t!”

“Why?!”

“You know why!” Papa turned back towards Special, now clearly upset with the Ghoul. “It’s because everytime I try to say those three words, all I can think about are...are…” He tried to finish his sentence, but as he tried to speak, memories began to flood his mind. And they weren’t just any memories. They were the memories of those he had once loved. 

With a choked back sob, Emeritus covered his face with one hand and hurried back into his room, slamming the door behind him.

Immediately, Special realized what he had just done and ran over to the door.

“Hey hey hey!” The Ghoul frantically banged on the door. “Papa, calm down! I didn’t mean to get angry! I didn’t mean to upset you! Come back out!”

He waited for about fifteen seconds, and when the door didn’t open he tried calling again. “Emeritus, please!”

Still nothing. The Ghoul waited for a couple more seconds, then placed his hand on the doorknob. “I’m coming in.” he announced.

When Special turned the knob and opened the door, he saw Papa sitting on the edge of his bed, rubbing his eyes with his hands while sobbing and mumbling something incoherent. Slowly, the Ghoul made his way over to the dark pope and sat down beside him. He placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Hey,” he murmured. “Look at me.”

The dark pope obeyed and lifted his head, sniffling once while blinking rapidly in an attempt to stop crying.  
“It’s going to be alright,” Special said. “Nothing is going to happen to her. You’re not going to lose her. Don’t worry.”

Emeritus said nothing in reply. He stared at Special for a moment before lowering his head, staring at his hands in his lap.

Special glanced down at Emeritus’ hands, and his eyes widened upon seeing their condition. The skin appeared to be burnt.

“You weren’t wearing your gloves?!” he exclaimed, standing up. “How many times-!” He quickly stopped himself from lashing out any further and took a breath, calming down. “Hang on. Wait here. I’ll get you a Remedium pill.” 

Papa nodded his head and watched as Special got up and headed over to a small drawer beside the bed. When the Ghoul opened it and began to rummage through its contents, the dark pope dried his face with his sleeve then looked back down at the palms of his hands. The skin was red and it stung, even when he didn’t touch it.

Only first-degree burns. Had Special waited any longer, they would’ve been a lot worse.

A couple minutes later, Special returned, now holding a small pill and a cup.

“...I know it’s supposed to be taken with a hot drink, but seeing as you were about to go to sleep when I arrived I figured the best thing for you to drink right now was water.” He held out the two objects. “I hope you don’t mind.”

Emeritus smiled as he took the small cup and the pill from Special. He popped the pill into his mouth then proceeded to drink the water that was in the cup. Upon finishing, he began to feel a slight tingling sensation on his palms.

“Since the pill was taken with a cold drink, they won’t heal as fast,” Special remarked. He took the cup from Emeritus. “But I’m sure they’ll be fully healed by the time you wake up.” The Ghoul paused for a moment. “...You need anything else?”

Papa smiled and shook his head in reply. “Thanks, but no,” he said. “I think…” The dark pope paused for a moment. “I think I’ll get some sleep now. Imperator just overloaded my schedule for tomorrow with a bunch of meetings again.” He closed his eyes and stretched for a moment.

Special smiled. He waited in silence until after Papa had reopened his eyes and lowered his arms. “Well then, I’ll leave you alone now. You need to be rested for tomorrow,” the Ghoul said. “Goodnight, Papa.”

Emeritus watched as the Ghoul turned and proceeded to head for the door. Suddenly, a thought entered his mind, and he held up one hand.

“Special, wait.”

The Ghoul immediately stopped in his tracks, one hand still on the doorknob as he turned to face the dark pope once more. “...Yeah?”

“I just…” Papa lowered his hand, a slight hint of bashfulness present on his face. “...Thanks for always being here for me.”

Special smiled back at him.

“Well, I am you, after all. Wouldn’t want to see myself suffering.”

Papa nodded and watched as Special left the room, closing the door behind him. He listened to the peaceful silence that had fallen around him for a bit, welcoming the quiet. After a while, he leaned over towards his dresser, took the small candle that was on top of it, and blew out the flame before lying down. But he didn’t fall asleep immediately, and instead found himself lightly stroking his bare chest while staring at the ceiling for a bit, deep in thought. He decided that, after he had woken up and had breakfast, he would go down to Cadence’s cell and try to make amends with her. Maybe even finally attempt to confess.

The dark pope smiled to himself as he closed his eyes, imagining the look of pure joy on Cadence’s face when he finally confessed his feelings to her as he drifted off to sleep.

***

This dream… he’d had many others before in this exact same setting. He was in a hotel room he had been in during a previous tour. The walls were pale yellow, the floor was dark brown, and the sheets on the bed were a similar shade as the floor but a little lighter. He was standing next to the bed, holding Cadence in an attempt to comfort her as she pressed a wet cloth against her bleeding side. He was once again dressed in his black suit.

“It’s going to be alright, Cadence,” he murmured. “It’s going to be alright.”

Cadence cracked her eyes open and slowly turned her head to look up at him. The dark pope could see that she wasn't wearing her mask.

“Papa, it… it hurts…”

“Ghuleh, you’re going to be okay.” He gently placed one hand, which he noticed wasn’t gloved, on top of hers. “I just need you to stay strong for me.” Emeritus stared into her eyes, his worry growing upon seeing the amount hurt he could see in them. She was shaking, and clearly in pain. “...Can you do that?”

Cadence winced once from the pain, but she nodded her head in response.

A relieved smile appeared on Papa’s face. “Good.” He then stood up, taking his hand off of Cadence. “Now don’t move, Ghuleh. I’ll be back really soon.”

He hesitated upon seeing the look in Cadence’s eyes, which seemed to say to him ‘Please don’t go’. He stared at her for a moment, brushing a few stray hairs out of her eyes, then turned and headed out the door into the larger bedroom in the apartment room.

Papa walked over to the dresser which was next to the television and opened it. He rummaged around for a bit, looking for anything that might help Cadence heal her wound quicker. Eventually, he took out a roll of bandages. The dark pope nodded to himself. If used with something like hydrogen peroxide, they could work.

He turned back around after closing the drawer, but what he saw upon doing so startled him.

Cadence was standing directly in front of him.

“Wh- Ghuleh! I told you to stay put! Why are you up?”

But the young acolyte did not answer his question. Without saying a word, she placed her hands on both of his shoulders and lightly pushed him, causing his back to hit the wall. He blinked a few times, trying to let his brain process what was currently going on. When he attempted to step away from the wall, Cadence stepped forward and planted her hands against the wall, trapping him.

The silence in the room was tense as the two of them did nothing but stare at each other for a moment. After a couple seconds, Papa’s brain finally finished processing the situation he was currently in, and he once more tried to speak.

“G-Ghuleh…”

His voice trailed off when he felt Cadence gently place a hand on his cheek. Silently, the young acolyte leaned in closer to him, her eyes partially closed. The dark pope held his breath, hundreds of questions and possible answers rushing through his head. Was she-

“Papa…” Cadence whispered his name once before she closed her eyes completely and leaned in. In a matter of seconds, her lips were on his.

Papa’s eyes went wide. Cadence was kissing him.  
He’d had dreams like this before, and he and Cadence had done this many times, but the kiss still surprised him, nonetheless. But after a moment, his eyes fluttered shut and he placed one hand on the back of her head as he deepened the kiss. Her lips were soft, and her mouth was warm. He moaned into her mouth when she eagerly added her tongue, and soon snaked his hand down her back, keeping her pressed against him. As he kissed her, the bandages fell out of his hand, and he could faintly taste something familiar. She tasted like… vanilla?

The two of them sighed as the kiss slowly broke apart. With his eyes still closed, Papa petted the back of Cadence’s head, running his fingers over her soft, brown locks. “Ghuleh…”

He didn’t get very far before Cadence took her hands off him and placed them onto his shoulders. His eyes snapped open when she gave them a good squeeze and leaned forward so that she was right by his ear.

“...I want to please every inch of your body,” she whispered. Her fingers toyed with the first three silver buttons on his shirt, and after a moment she lifted her head to gaze into his mismatched eyes. “...Will you let me, Papa?”

A low groan escaped him upon hearing Cadence whisper those words to him. He shivered as he imagined what she would do to him, and before long he could feel the blood beginning to flow to the lower half of his body, heating him up. His hands gripped her upper arms tightly. He needed her.

“Yes…” he responded, his voice somewhere between a moan and a sigh. “Yes, Ghuleh, please do…I-I want you so much...” He didn’t even care how weak and desperate he sounded. His body’s urges were pushing out every other thought.

Cadence smiled at him. Slowly, she undid the buttons on his shirt one by one, taking her time as she kept her eyes focused on his face. Before long, his entire chest was exposed to her.

She started with his upper chest, massaging his shoulders while planting light kisses all over his skin. He closed his eyes and sighed. He loved it when she did this. It was very intimate, and she would always whisper the sweetest things to him in between kisses.

He gave a small gasp when she nipped his neck, then gave another sigh as Cadence began to kiss, lick, and suck on his skin. He loved her mouth. With it she could flash him an adorable smile, sing a beautiful song, and please him so well. He moaned softly as she slowly inched lower and lower down his body, imagining how it would feel to have that warm, wet mouth somewhere else…

Cadence glanced upwards and met his eyes. She smiled at him for a moment, then leaned forward and began to lick and suck on the patch of skin his sigil was on. Immediately, his eyes went wide and he threw his head back against the wall. The heat of her mouth on the sensitive mark sent a burning sensation throughout his entire body, but it was a pleasant, intense heat. 

“C-Cadence…” he moaned, tangling his fingers in her hair. “You’re so- Ah!” His grip on her hair tightened and his body tensed up when she bit down on the mark. He hissed when she unclenched her teeth and took her mouth off, the feeling of electric sparks quickly disappearing. Glancing down, he noticed the teeth marks she left behind.

He glanced back at Cadence when he noticed her place her hands on his belt.

“P-please,” he begged when she made eye contact with him again. He could feel how hard he was. He needed release soon. “Please, Ghuleh, just...just…”

The young acolyte didn’t even let him finish his sentence before she quickly undid his belt and pulled down his lower garments. His erect cock sprang free, and the dark pope watched as Cadence slowly reached out and took it in her hands. He held his breath as she leaned forward, eagerly awaiting the warmth of her mouth…

But instead, she began planting kisses along the shaft, ghosting her lips from base to tip as she did so. A disappointed whine left him as it twitched in her hand.  
“P-please don’t tease-!” he groaned. “It’s-...” His hands gripped her hair again, tighter this time. “Ghuleh, please, your mouth… I want your mouth…”

Cadence paused for a moment, seemingly contemplating her response to his request. After a moment, however, she smiled almost mischievously and brought her mouth close to the tip again, which was already dripping a little. Keeping her eyes locked on his, she licked the lip slowly, eagerly watching his reaction.  
The moment her tongue slid over his cock, he was already a squirming, moaning mess. When she took him farther into her mouth, his toes curled up and he began moaning her name over and over, the ache in his body beginning to grow alarmingly quick.

She cupped his balls as she bobbed her head up and down, coating his shaft in saliva. His breathing quickened and his moans became more frequent as he felt himself quickly approaching his climax. Fucking hell, she was good.

“C-Cadence…” he groaned, trying to hold out for just a little longer. He shut his eyes tightly, feeling himself getting closer and closer. He wouldn’t last much longer. “I-I...I'm-!”

His climax suddenly hitting him hard, Emeritus arched his back and nearly screamed profanities in English, Swedish, and Italian as his cum spilled into her mouth. He felt her swallow it down eagerly, moaning around his cock as she did so. With one last breathy utterance of the word “fuck”, his grip on Cadence’s hair loosened and he slumped against the wall, panting heavily as his body slowly ceased trembling.

“...Cadence,” he began. “I…”

But when the dark pope opened his eyes after feeling Cadence finally take her mouth off his dick, he abruptly stopped, for it was no longer Cadence who was in front of him. Now it was a man with dark brown hair that was slicked to the side, and eyes that were an extremely bright blue.

Emeritus gasped upon seeing the man’s face, recognizing him immediately. “O-Omega…” he whispered.

The man smiled at him. “Hello, Papa,” he said, standing up.

A smile slowly tugged at Emeritus’ lips, and he hesitated before reaching out to touch the Ghoul’s face. When he did so, his smile widened and he blinked rapidly, beginning to feel tears starting to form in his eyes. It had been so long since he had seen him. 

“You’re…” The dark pope started to talk, but quickly stopped. He suddenly remembered that he was still dreaming. His smile slowly disappeared, and he lowered his hand as he hung his head. Papa thought back to the last night he had seen the Ghoul that was in front of him. “Omega… I-I’m so sorry… I didn’t want to-” 

He abruptly stopped when he felt Omega place a hand underneath his chin and tilt his head back up so that their eyes could meet. As the dark pope stared, he could almost feel himself drowning in the bright blue color of Omega’s eyes.

“Papa, that was all in the past,” Omega said, still smiling warmly. “Don’t think about it.” The Ghoul slowly brought himself closer. “Just focus on me.”

Emeritus gave a quiet sigh as he closed his eyes again and Omega brought him in for a kiss. He wrapped his arms around the taller man and held him close, not ever wanting to let go. As he kissed him, Papa could still taste the vanilla despite the taste of his cum still lingering in the Ghoul’s mouth.

“...Do you remember?”

Papa opened his eyes when Omega spoke to him after the kiss had broken. He nodded his head. “How could I forget... all those times we spent together?” he whispered.

But the Ghoul shook his head. “That’s not what I meant,” he said. He watched as Papa took his hands off his shoulders, a look of confusion present on the dark pope’s face. “I mean do you remember what I told you on the night we both finally confessed our feelings for each other?”

Emeritus remained silent, lowering his head as he attempted to recall the moment that Omega was referring to.

“You said that… if something were to happen to you… I shouldn’t focus on mourning for losing you and instead move on… to find someone else…” he answered. He then lifted his head to meet the Ghoul’s eyes. “...Kerstin told you that same thing, right?”

The Ghoul’s smile disappeared, yet he nodded his head. “...She did.” He then hesitated for a moment and sighed quietly. “I hope she’s still alright. I haven’t seen her ever since the night Infestissumam was falling…”

Now it was Emeritus’ turn to smile. With one hand, he tilted up Omega’s head so that their eyes could meet once more. 

“Don’t worry,” the dark pope said, reassuring him. “She’s alive and well; safe with me. The regeneration managed to restore her eyesight.”

Omega nodded his head, but did not smile back. A serious expression remained on his face. “Have you found someone else?” he asked.

Papa hesitated for a moment, then nodded his head. “...Yes,” he answered. 

“And have you confessed your feelings to them yet?”  
A look of shame appeared on Papa’s face. He shook his head in reply. “N-no…”

“Why?”

“B-because-”

The dark pope was abruptly cut off when he was suddenly brought closer and kissed again. His eyes went wide, and when he broke away from the kiss he saw that Omega had suddenly turned back into Cadence. After calming back down again, he wrapped his arms around her and brought her in for a hug, kissing the top of her head after a moment too.

“...Ghuleh,” he whispered. “Cadence, I-” He hesitated for a moment. His mind was screaming at him, demanding that he confess to her this instant. He closed his eyes and kissed her on the lips again for a couple seconds. Once again, he could taste the vanilla. Only when he finally pulled away did he finish speaking, the words quickly rushing out of his mouth. “I-I love you. I love you!"

Silently, she smiled and touched his face again. But when she did Papa’s smile suddenly faded. Something was wrong. 

Her hand… it felt ice cold. 

The dark pope opened his eyes, and when he did he gasped from the sight before him. Once again, Cadence was no longer standing in front of him. Now the person in his arms was an older woman with long, curly red hair, green eyes, and a long green dress. A black and purple circlet was present on her head.

“L-Lavana…” he whispered.

The woman smiled at him. When she opened her mouth to speak, her voice was barely audible.

“Ä-...Älsklad…” she murmured. She tried to talk more, but suddenly she began to cough. She covered her mouth with one hand, but the coughing only grew worse. It sounded like she was struggling to get enough air into her lungs to breathe. Suddenly, Papa noticed that something was beginning to drip down her hand. Something red.

Emeritus’ eyes widened as he realized what was happening. “No!” he yelled. He took Lavana’s hand away from her face, but when he saw her face he froze. Her mouth was hanging wide open, and there was blood pouring out and dripping down her chin and neck. She was coughing repeatedly and gasping for air. Suddenly, she lurched forward, coughing up blood which landed on herself as well as Emeritus. The dark pope immediately recoiled, momentarily disgusted by the blood and saliva that came in contact with him. Nevertheless, he once again reached out towards Lavana and grabbed her before she fell and hit the floor. “No no no, please no!”

He placed one hand on Lavana’s back, attempting to keep her upright. But her head kept lolling forward, and he was soon forced to hold her head up with his other hand.

“Lavana, please!” Tears were now streaming out of his eyes as he begged for her to stay with him. “Please!”

But he could only watch as a small sound left the woman’s throat. Her eyes rolled back and her head lolled to the side as her body went limp in his arms. Then she fell to the floor, slipping through his arms like a ghost going through a wall. He stared in silence, not believing what had just happened at first. But then his legs gave out from under him, and he collapsed onto the floor beside her body. He tried to stop the tears from flowing, but it was in vain. Countless memories and emotions flooded his mind. He shut his eyes tightly, making the tears fall faster, and before long he screamed a long, loud cry of anguish.

He woke up from the dream panting heavily with tears streaming down his painted face. Blinking rapidly, he sat up and tried to catch his breath. His body shook as he attempted to calm down and became fully aware of the fact that he was no longer dreaming.

After wiping his eyes with his sleeve, he placed a trembling hand over his heart, feeling it beat rapidly in his chest. After he felt it slow down a little bit, the dark pope sighed and closed his eyes.

“Cadence, I may have lost them,” he said. “But I won’t lose you.”

***

Back in the cell, Cadence laid on the bed, still awake. She had just woken up from a dream. It was as if she had been reliving the memory of Papa finding her beaten body on the sidewalk of Meliora.

She blinked rapidly as she recalled all the good memories she'd had with Papa. All the friendly chats, the hugs, the joking around... and the kiss.

Maybe... maybe he really did love her. He just couldn’t say so for some reason...

The young acolyte hugged her body as she shut her eyes.

"...Papa," she murmured. "...I can't stay mad at you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would really appreciate your thoughts on this chapter.
> 
> BTW THIS SERIES NOW HAS AN ASK BLOG ON TUMBLR! GO CHECK IT OUT!
> 
> https://crescendoaskblog.tumblr.com/


	11. To Bathe in Pure Fresh Blood

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is where the Graphic Depictions of Violence warning comes into play again. I won't spoil it but I suggest you read with caution if you aren't comfortable with it.

It was almost as if Emeritus couldn’t head over to Cadence’s cell fast enough after waking up the next night. He'd gotten dressed and eaten his breakfast faster than he could ever remember (but not sloppily in the slightest), and before long he had managed to catch up to Cirice in the hallway, who was heading the opposite way. Upon seeing him, the Sister immediately stopped in her tracks.

“God kväll, Papa,” she said, giving him a bow.

Emeritus smiled. “God kväll, Cirice. You doing well this evening?”

Cirice nodded her head, but she did not smile back. A look of concern was present on her face. 

“Yes, I am, but…” She paused, glancing down the hall behind her in the direction of Cadence’s cell. “...I'm worried about Miss Cadence. She wasn’t eating last night, a-and she didn’t seem any more eager to do so when I brought her breakfast just now…”

Papa frowned and followed the Sister’s gaze, staring in the same direction for a moment before turning to face her again.

“I’ll go talk to her,” he said. “You won’t have to worry about a thing.”

Cirice nibbled her lower lip in thought, then after a moment met Papa’s eyes and nodded her head. 

“O-okay,” she said. “I trust you.” She then gave another bow to him before continuing down the hall in the direction she had been headed in earlier.

Emeritus watched Cirice disappear around the corner, then turned to look forward once more and rubbed his head with one hand.

“...She’s not eating?” he mumbled to himself. He then sighed and lowered his hand. “No no no. That won’t do.”

He walked with a purposeful stride and his hands clasped behind his back as he made his way to Cadence’s cell. When he arrived at the large metal door, he reached out with one hand and knocked twice.

“...Ghuleh?” he called. “Are you alright?”

There was silence for a moment before the young acolyte responded to him.

“I-I’m fine.”

Emeritus glanced at the lock on the door for a moment. He started to reach out towards it, but soon abruptly stopped, remembering what had happened last night. Was she still mad at him?

With a sigh, the dark pope lowered his hand. “I-...May I come in?” he asked. He held his breath as he waited for her to answer.

Again, there was more silence on Cadence’s end, but only for a bit.

“S-sure. Of course. Yes.”

The dark pope gave a relieved sigh and smiled upon hearing Cadence’s response. He reached out towards the lock again, and quickly unlocked it and opened the door. When he entered the cell, he saw Cadence sitting up on the bed, head lowered with her hands in her lap. 

His smile quickly disappearing once more, he slowly walked over towards her, but when he stopped he did not sit down next to her. 

“Cadence…” He spoke quieter now. “...look at me.”

Slowly, the young acolyte obeyed him, lifting her head to meet his eyes. With her hood lowered, he could see most of her face, even though she was still wearing her mask. She still appeared to be a little tired.

The dark pope folded his arms across his chest. “What’s this I hear about you not eating?”

Cadence averted her eyes, glancing at the tray of food Cirice had left for her on the table for a moment before looking back at Papa.

“I...I’m just really not that hungry,” she said. Her eyes widened slightly and she placed her hands on her stomach when it suddenly growled immediately after she finished speaking.

Not believing her words, Papa raised an eyebrow. “Are you?”

He watched as Cadence once again averted her eyes. However, after a moment, a smile began to tug at his lips, and he turned around to take the tray off the table. After doing so, he sat down next to Cadence on the bed.

“You need to eat, Cadence,” he said. He rested the tray on his lap, then turned to face her. “Please. I don’t want you to starve yourself.”

Cadence stared at Papa for a moment before turning her attention to the food on the tray. Her mouth began to water upon seeing the platter, but she did not immediately reach for the food. Instead, she took the glass of water and drank it quickly in a few gulps. “Okay, I’m good,” she declared, placing the cup back down on the tray.

“Cadence.” Emeritus took the fork off the tray and stabbed a strawberry that was in the small bowl of fruit. “I’m serious.” He held it out towards her. “You need to eat.”

She only pressed her lips together, staring at the piece of fruit in silence.

Suddenly, a smile appeared on Emeritus’ face. “Do I have to feed you?” he asked, jokingly.

Abruptly, Cadence snatched the bowl from off the tray and took the fork out of his hand. “N-No!” she answered. But although she had been startled by the question, she gave a laugh. Yet, despite this, she did not smile. “I’m not a baby!” She then turned away from him and began to eat the fruit in the bowl.

Papa stared at her, concern once again showing on his face. When Cadence finished eating what was in the bowl and placed it back onto the tray, which occurred rather quickly, he noticed, he put the tray back onto the table before cautiously reaching a hand out towards her.  
“Ghuleh...is there something troubling you?” he asked.

Cadence kept her head lowered as she gave a sigh.

“I-I just… I feel really bad about yelling at you last night…I didn’t mean to...”

The dark pope nodded his head. “I understand. The emotions you had felt during those moments had overwhelmed you after you recalled them.” He then smiled and took his hand off her. “But don’t let the guilt consume your thoughts, alright? You shouldn’t let the past weigh you down.”

Cadence nodded her head in response, but her head still remained lowered. “T-there’s… one other thing…” she added. “Something I’ve been wondering recently…”

Emeritus tilted his head slightly to the side, curious.  
“Yes?”

The young acolyte took a breath to calm herself, then hesitated before speaking. 

“P-Papa, do-... do you love me?”

The dark pope’s eyes widened upon hearing the question. He tried to come up with a response, but he suddenly found himself at a loss for words.

“I-I’m just wondering! Because...you know... I've already confessed...” Cadence added, lifting her head to meet his eyes.

Papa stared at Cadence in silence, furrowing his brow as memories of Lavana and Omega began to return to him. But he quickly pushed those thoughts out of his head. Without saying a word, the dark pope wrapped his arms around Cadence and pulled her close, embracing her. When he spoke to her, it was barely above a whisper.

“Jag har älskat dig med hela mitt hjärta längre än du har vetat.” He knew she wouldn’t understand a single word he was saying, and the thought of that pained him. “Jag önskar bara att jag hade modet att berätta på ett sätt som du skulle förstå.”

When he pulled away from Cadence, he saw a mixture of worry and confusion in her eyes. With a sigh, he placed a hand on the back of her head.

“...I’m sorry,” he said, returning to speaking in English. “I know you don’t like being locked up in here.” The dark pope took his hand off of Cadence’s head, continuing to maintain eye contact with her. “I want this to be over for you as quickly as possible, but in order for that to happen I need you to stay strong, alright? These next few nights are going to be difficult for you.”

Still silent, Cadence stared at him for a moment before the look of concern disappeared from her face and she nodded her head in response.

A smile reappeared on Papa’s face, and before long he found himself glancing around the room. He was glad that Cadence had managed to keep the cell mostly tidy, save for the two bedsheets that had been tossed onto the floor.

His eyes then fell upon a book that was next to Cadence.

“Oho, I see you've been reading.” He picked up the book and glanced at the title to see which one she had picked from the pile. After doing so, he glanced around the room, eventually finding the rest of the books in the corner of the room by the door. “What are they doing over there?” he asked.

“Better light by the doorway when the hall lights are on.”  
Papa nodded his head, then glanced once again at the book in his hand. “I'm surprised that you picked this one first,” he said.

At that, Cadence smiled and folded her arms across her chest. “The other ones are so dirty!”

“But that can't be possible. They were clean when I gave them to you, I'm sure of it!”

Cadence laughed and playfully hit his arm. “You know what I mean!”

The two of them laughed together for a bit before Cadence suddenly stopped, stretched for a moment, and stood up, beginning to untie her mask. “Well then, if you'll excuse me, Papa, I'm going to go take a bath now.”

Immediately, Emeritus stopped laughing, and his smile disappeared. His eyes widened, and as Cadence began to head towards the smaller door at the opposite end of the cell after completely removing her mask, he abruptly stood up and grabbed her arm. “N-no!” he shouted.

Cadence stopped in her tracks upon feeling Papa grab her arm, and she turned to face him. A look of confusion was clearly present on her face. “...What?”

The dark pope took a moment to attempt to calšm himself down. However, his eyes remained wide. “You...you can't,” he declared.

By now Cadence had turned so that she was facing him completely. “Papa, I didn't get to last night, and I need to maintain good hygiene while in here.”

Emeritus remained silent for a moment before closing his eyes and giving a sigh.

“Alright,” he said. “But I'm going in with you.”

Cadence’s eyes went wide. “What?!”

“Not like that!” Papa continued.“Just… You'll need me to stay close by. In case something happens. Is that alright?”

The young acolyte remained silent as she considered her response. After a bit of time, however, she finally nodded her head in response.

Papa gave a relieved smile, and soon took his hand off her arm. “Alright,” he said. He then reached out and took hold of Cadence’s left hand. “Now hold my hand. I'll lead you there.”

Cadence immediately obeyed, continuing to hold Papa's hand as he began to lead her towards the door. However, with each step she took, the young acolyte could feel a pain beginning to grow in her head.  
Without warning, the intensity of the pain in her head increased greatly, and Cadence suddenly felt nauseous. With a cry of pain, she shut her eyes and suddenly fell, gripping Papa's hand tightly.

“P-Papa!” she cried after he had caught her. “M-my head…!”

“It's alright,” the dark pope responded, holding her upright. “It's alright, Ghuleh. Just breathe.”

Cadence tried to do as she was told, breathing heavily as the pain continued. If this was another memory that was returning to her, then why was it happening now?!

Then the pain abruptly ceased. When Cadence cautiously opened her eyes, she was no longer in the cell. Instead, she was now in a long, dimly-lit, windowless hallway with both the walls and the floor made of stone.

“Everything is ready, Mistress,” said a male voice next to her.

Cadence turned to find that the hand she was holding was no longer Papa’s. Now she was holding the hand of a young man in a long black cloak with shaggy brown hair and extremely pale blue eyes. 

Gabriel.

But Cadence did not feel angry or afraid upon seeing him. Instead, she smiled.

“Thank you, Gabriel,” she said. Her voice sounded much more mature, indicating that this was once again a memory from back when she was Elizabeth. “Now, if you'll excuse me…”

It was then that she raised her right hand, and she suddenly became aware of the fact that she was currently holding a knife - a silver dagger with a red stone in the middle.

“...I must go and deal with the wretched girl.”

Gabriel nodded his head, then turned and walked over towards the door. Upon opening it, Cadence was presented with a flight of stone steps leading downward into another room. As soon as Cadence began to walk down the stairs, Gabriel closed the door behind her. Without turning back, she continued her descent.

As she descended further, however, she began to hear what sounded like muffled screaming coming from the room she was headed towards. But the sound of it didn’t frighten her. Instead, she smiled, and upon entering the room saw a young maid - who was probably no older than her early twenties - being suspended upside-down over a large, deep stone basin by chains that were wrapped around her ankles and were hanging from the ceiling. There was a piece of cloth tied around her mouth which muffled her cries as tears streamed out of her eyes.

Elizabeth smiled when she met the maid’s eyes. She took her time making her way over to her, making note of how the girl’s breathing quickened the closer she got to her. After circling her a couple times, she suddenly stopped on the servant girl’s left.

Taking the knife, she slowly dragged the blade along the maid’s bare arm. While it didn’t slice open the skin, the servant girl still trembled and emitted a long, muffled whine. Elizabeth couldn’t help but grin wider upon hearing her.

“Aw, you don’t like the knife, Juliet?” she asked, addressing the servant girl by name. She then took the dagger off her and set it down on the edge of the basin. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to use it... yet.”

She then slowly reached up and took one of the needles out of her pinned-up hair, causing a few strands to become loose and fall down over her face. She placed the point of the needle on the servant girl’s neck and dragged it along the skin, listening as the girl’s breathing quickened and her whimpering continued.

Then the skin was punctured. The girl gave a muffled cry and tensed up, shutting her eyes tightly. Bright red blood dribbled out of the wound and down her neck.  
Elizabeth licked her lips upon seeing the blood. Placing her index finger on Juliet’s neck, she caught a drop of blood and soon dragged her finger upward, catching more of the red liquid. She then brought the finger to her mouth and closed her eyes as she licked the blood off.  
Afterwards, she picked up the knife and slowly trailed the blade down the girl’s cheek before hooking the blade underneath the piece of cloth and cutting it with a flick of her wrist, freeing her mouth. Immediately, Juliet began gasping for air as she sobbed and screamed at Elizabeth.

“P-please! Please!” she begged. “Please don’t! I-I’ll do anything else that you want! Anything but this, please!”

But Elizabeth only gave a chuckle and shook her head. She moved, trailing the blade over the girl’s clothes until she was standing directly behind Juliet’s back.

“This, Juliet, is the only thing I want right now,” she said. Her smile then widened. “Now then, let’s see if you can be a good girl this time and scream for me.”

The knife slashed the fabric of Juliet’s dress and tore open the back of her right shoulder. The servant girl immediately shrieked from the pain. Elizabeth began to cut away some more of the dress’ fabric, allowing the blood to drip down onto the floor easier. Hurrying in order to not let the blood go to waste, Elizabeth began to undo the robe that was covering her body.

“Did that hurt, Juliet?” Elizabeth asked as she allowed some of the blood to drip onto her arm.

But the servant girl did not respond with words. She only continued to cry as the stinging pain slowly subsided.  
Elizabeth frowned. Impatient for an answer, she swung the knife again, this time slashing the girl’s lower back. “Answer me!”

“Y-yes…!” Juliet sobbed in reply, speaking rather quietly. She then quickly repeated her response, louder this time, fearing that the countess hadn’t heard her.  
Elizabeth pressed her lips together and loudly exhaled through her nose. Putting the knife back down again, she once more reached up and took out three more needles, causing more of her hair to fall down. Then, without saying a word, she jammed one of the needles underneath the fingernail of Juliet’s index finger. The servant girl screamed yet again, and both her hands immediately tensed up.

“That was for not answering me quickly enough,” Elizabeth declared. Some of the blood from the earlier wounds dripped down onto the lower part of her leg. 

A second needle was jammed in, this time underneath the girl’s middle finger.

“That was for feeling the need to repeat yourself when I hadn’t told you to do so!”

Without waiting for Juliet to finish screaming from the feeling of the second needle, the third and final needle was then jammed in underneath the nail of her ring finger.

“And that was for not addressing me properly as ‘Mistress!’”

Elizabeth then took a step back. She slowly took a deep breath to calm herself down, closing her eyes as she did so.

“So I’m going to ask you again, Juliet,” she declared, no longer shouting. “Did that hurt?”

This time, Juliet responded immediately. “Y-yes, Mistress…”

Slowly, a smile reappeared on Elizabeth’s face. She reached up towards her head and pulled out the remaining needles, shaking her head for a moment to allow all of her long hair to fall down. Without saying another word, she took the hand which hadn’t been stabbed with any needles and jabbed the palm of Juliet’s hand. As the girl cried out from the pain, Elizabeth took the knife and cut away a piece of fabric from Juliet’s dress. Smiling, she slashed the maid’s back with the knife and closed her eyes as she allowed the blood to drip onto both her body and the cloth in her hand. After she felt that a sufficient amount of blood had fallen onto her, she began to scrub her body with the piece of fabric, smearing the dark red drops all over her skin while continuing to tear open more wounds with the knife.

When it seemed to her like Juliet could scream no more, Elizabeth felt the urge to let this end. Smiling, she moved until she was standing directly in front of Juliet.

“Run out of tears, Juliet?” the countess asked.

The servant girl emitted a quiet sob as she stared up at her. “P-...please…” she begged.

But Elizabeth only continued to smile. Slowly, she leaned forward and placed a kiss on Juliet’s forehead similar to how a mother would kiss her child. But in reality, the kiss meant absolutely nothing.

“Don’t worry.” The blade of the knife was positioned at the girl’s throat. “It’ll be over soon.”

“W-wai-”

But that was as far as Juliet got before the countess slit her throat. The remaining blood that had been kept in her body now washed over Elizabeth, coating her in even more red. She smiled and dropped the fabric and the knife, laughing as the warm, red liquid flowed over her. However, as the blood began to slowly cease flowing, her laughter slowly began to turn into sobs. Her voice became slightly higher in pitch as it seemed to lose its maturity. She covered her eyes with her blood-covered hands and lowered her head.

“It’s okay, Ghuleh. Just breathe. It’ll be over any minute now. Just breathe.”

Cadence cautiously opened her eyes and lowered her hands upon hearing Papa’s voice. She blinked a few times, attempting to slow down her rapid breathing and heartbeat as she took in her surroundings. There was no large stone basin. There was no bleeding body being suspended from the ceiling by chains. Just a bathroom. The liquid that was running down her body was no longer blood, but now warm, clear water, and there was a towel wrapped around her body.

“...Ghuleh? Are you alright?”

Upon seeing Papa knelt down in front of her, Cadence immediately broke down. She pulled the dark pope close and sobbed on his shoulder.

“Oh, P-Papa, I- I can’t-!” She paused and lifted her head. “Did… did I really do that?! D-did I really… bathe in people’s... blood?”

Emeritus sighed. With one hand, he gently wiped the tears away from her face. “Yes, Cadence. You did. To many, many people.”

Cadence’s eyes widened. “A-and no one tried to stop me?!”

Papa shook his head again. “Our way of thinking during the Opus era was drastically different than how it is now. Back then, we were all completely okay with it as long as we felt that the person being tortured deserved it.”

In the silence that fell, Emeritus grabbed another towel and dried Cadence’s hair without saying a word. 

“I… I can’t believe I did that…”

Upon hearing what Cadence said, he reached out and gently placed a hand on the young acolyte’s face.

“Ghuleh, listen to me,” he said. “You’re not her. You’re not Elizabeth anymore. Her lifetime ended years ago. You are Cadence, and this is your lifetime.” He furrowed his brow for a moment. “Promise me that you won’t dwell on the past, alright?”

Cadence took a few slow breaths as she stared at Papa. When he took his hand off her face, she became surprised when he suddenly wrapped his arms around her. “Ghuleh...I’m sorry you had to remember that,” he whispered.

In that moment, Cadence began to remember more, but it was memories from her current lifetime. She remembered the time when she had still been Mary, when all it took to cheer her up was a short conversation, a hug, or the singing of a little tune from this man she had only known by the sound of his voice and whose face she hadn’t seen for over two years. The young acolyte smiled due to the happy memories and closed her eyes, wrapping her own arms around him. She was happy when he didn’t object despite the fact that she was still dripping wet from the water she had been in earlier.

“...Stay?” she murmured. “Just a little longer?”

A smile reappeared on Papa’s face, and a chuckle left his throat.

“Perhaps after you get dressed,” he remarked.

Cadence laughed with him, but she did not pull away.

“Y-yeah,” she said, smiling. “I'll get right to it.” She paused, and averted her eyes for a moment, blushing. "But... could you kiss me first?"

Emeritus' smile widened, and before long he gladly oblidged.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah. I had to do A LOT of research on Elizabeth Bathory's torture methods to write this chapter. That woman was messed up.
> 
> Don't worry though. The next chapter will be more light-hearted.


	12. Fun Times

“...You sure you can’t stay any longer?”

Papa sighed as Cadence, who was now back in her black and red clerical outfit, unwrapped her arms from around him. 

“I’m sorry, Cadence,” he said, standing up. “I would if I could, but I unfortunately have a meeting that I must get to real soon.” 

He turned to face her and, upon seeing the look on the young acolyte’s face, smiled slightly. “Oh, come on now, don’t give me that look. You know they’re mandatory.” 

He reached out and gently took her hand, staring into her eyes for a moment before continuing. “I promise I’ll be back. And you know I don’t break my promises.”  
Cadence stared up at the dark pope for a moment before she glanced down at her hand. She did not look away until Emeritus pulled away from her. She watched as Papa opened the door, then hesitated before turning to glance back at her. Their eyes met again, and before long Papa smiled at her.

“Have a good night, Ghuleh.”

Cadence watched as the door closed behind Emeritus, not moving until she finally heard the sound of the large metal door being re-locked. 

“...Good night, Papa.”

With a smile and a sigh, she listened as the sound of the dark pope’s footsteps became farther and farther away before glancing around the cell. Finding her mask, she slowly put it back on, taking her time with tying it. After she was done, she picked up the book she had been in the middle of reading and walked over by the door.

Sitting against the wall, Cadence opened the book to the page she had been on last night and began to read silently to herself. By now, the story had gotten pretty interesting. The main character, Deirdre, had just been caught trespassing and taking photographs in a restricted area. Now the police officer was questioning her.

Cadence had sort of gotten used to the quiet of the cell by now, but it was still quite unnerving. At times, even the smallest of sounds would startle her. Sometimes, she thought she could hear footsteps coming from the floor above her cell, and it was at those moments that she always wondered just who exactly was there; so close and yet so far… Just a few feet separating them from each other...

With a sigh, the young acolyte continued to read. She quickly found herself once again becoming immersed in the story; losing track of time as she became completely lost in the fictional tale. Images of the scenes played out in her head as if she were an invisible, silent bystander watching the everything unfold before her eyes. She saw Deirdre - her pale face, slightly tattered clothes, and messy red hair. She saw her nervousness, and the small, silver camera in her hands. She saw the stern look on the police officer’s face as he asked Deirdre questions and demanded answers from her. She saw the squad car, its lights flashing brightly while alternating between red, white, and blue. And she saw the entire landscape - the long row of massive houses which seemed to be devoid of any life within them, the dry grass with large stones and patches of dirt strewn about, and the great, towering chain link fence that Deirdre had dared herself to climb over.

"Well well well! Looks like the catnapper is now trapped in the big house!"

The high-pitched voice which broke the silence startled Cadence, and she yelped as she jumped, abruptly dropped her book in the process. Slightly panicked, she quickly glanced around the cell, and pretty soon her eyes fell upon a small tabby cat with a bell on its black collar looking back at her just a few feet away.

“D-Dahlia?!” Cadence stammered. “H-how did you get-”

The young acolyte abruptly stopped herself from finishing her question when she suddenly became aware of the sound of muffled laughter from behind the metal door. She quickly recognized who it was and stood up. “Earth?”

“H-hi, Cadence,” the Ghoul replied, trying to breathe and keep his voice down despite the fact that he was laughing so hard. “O-oh man, w-we...we got you so good!”

Cadence couldn’t help but smile upon hearing the Ghoul laugh, once she had calmed down, at least. It was nice to hear his voice again after about an entire night of not seeing him. The most she could see was just a little bit of his shadow peeking out from underneath the door. But there was another shadow beside his.

“Earth,” Cadence began. “who’s with-”

“Hello, sister,” came a calm, older voice.

Cadence smiled again, recognizing who the voice belonged to. “Hello, Air.”

“We came to check in on you,” the Ghoul continued. “But we unfortunately don’t know the code, so… we can’t enter the cell. And letting you out is prohibited.”

Cadence nodded her head, but her smile soon disappeared. “...You guys even supposed to be down here?”

“Nope!” Earth replied, finally beginning to get his laughter under control. “We snuck in.”

“Like spies!” Dahlia piped up. “Earth’s ‘Agent Mud’, I’m ‘Commander Snuggles’, and Air is…” The tabby kitten paused and turned towards the door.

Cadence heard Air give a sigh.

“I’m not saying it.”

“C’mon, pleeeeeeeeease?” Dahlia begged.

“Just say it.” Cadence heard Air’s familiar, Azrael, suddenly speak. “At least yours is slightly better than ‘Agent Grumpy Pants’.”

“Because you’re always grumpy!” Dahlia interjected.

Cadence couldn’t help but giggle upon hearing the names and everyone go back and forth with each other. Eventually, she heard Air give a sigh, and after a bit of silence he finally spoke again.

“...Agent Tree.”

At that, Cadence couldn’t help it. She completely burst out laughing, holding her sides as she pressed her back against the wall.

“Oh… oh my gosh! Agent Tree! That’s-! Ha ha ha ha!”

“And I’m ‘Agent Fuzzball’!”

Cadence opened her eyes after she had finally calmed down to find a tiny munchkin kitten with bright blue eyes sitting right next to Dahlia. Smiling, the young acolyte folded her arms across her chest.

“Well well,” she said. “I see that going to training really has benefitted you!”

Liam held his head high, clearly proud of his accomplishment. “Yep! I can teleport myself now!”

“It took quite a bit of purr-suasion, but I think he was very furr-tunate to have learned teleportation in time,” Dahlia remarked.

Cadence and the two Ghouls all groaned from the terrible puns Dahlia made, while the tabby kitten only laughed. But after a moment, Cadence heard Earth give a quiet gasp.

“Earth, hush,” Air said, speaking in a hushed voice. “Just hold my hand.” There was a pause. “Azrael, get in there for a moment.”

In the blink of an eye, Azrael appeared next to Cadence in a cloud of black smoke. Before the young acolyte could say anything, the silver maine coon held up a paw to silence her.

“Keep quiet,” he commanded. “Someone else is out there.”

“But-”

Cadence’s next question died away as Azrael glared at her with a look that seemed to say to her “I'm not going to repeat myself so do as I say”. 

She suddenly became aware of the sound of footsteps coming closer and closer to her cell. When they sounded like they were right outside her cell door, she held her breath. The footsteps stopped, and there was silence for what felt like an eternity. It was so quiet that you could've heard a pin drop.

Then the footsteps continued, but this time they headed in the opposite direction, away from her cell. As the sound of them began to die away, Cadence could slowly begin to breathe easier.

“Okay, he’s gone,” Air said, finally breaking the silence.

Cadence took a deep breath as Azrael disappeared.

“W-we… we should probably go…” By the sound of Earth’s voice, he was still clearly a bit shaken. “C’mon, Dahlia.”

There was silence for a bit after Dahlia disappeared as well in the same way Azrael had earlier. After the tabby kitten was gone from her sight, Cadence turned to look down at Liam, who was staring up at her.

“...Cadence?” he said. “When are you gonna get out of here?”

“I…” Cadence paused. She honestly had no idea when she would be able to leave the cell. Regardless, she smiled at her familiar and knelt down to pet his head.

“Soon, Liam. Soon.”

The tiny munchkin kitten stared up at her when she lowered her hand.

“Okay…” He then waddled over to her hand and nuzzled his face against it for a moment. “I’ll miss you.”

Cadence smiled again, her heart breaking a little. “Me too.”

She watched as her familiar disappeared in a cloud of black smoke, and when he was gone completely she sat down onto the floor and sighed, resting the back of her head on the wall.

“Oh, I almost forgot. Cadence?”

Cadence turned her head towards the door when she heard Air call her. “Yes?”

“Has Papa had you remember only unhappy memories so far?”

Even though the Ghoul couldn’t see her through the door, the young acolyte still nodded her head. “Yes,” she answered.

“I see.” There was a pause, and then, after a moment, something slid underneath the door. It appeared to be a folder filled with some sheets of paper. “Then I suggest that you look at the first song that begins with the letter ‘D’. You should remember something much more pleasant.”

Another pause. “I snuck that song in there. The rest are songs that Papa wants you to review during your time here. Some are ones you’ve already learned, while others are completely new. He says you need to start learning them so you’re ready for the tour.”

Cadence picked up the folder, then glanced towards the door again. “...Thank you, Air,” she said.

“No problem, Cadence. Hang in there. You’ll get through this.”

Cadence listened to the sound of the Ghouls’ footsteps growing farther and farther away before she finally opened the folder. She looked through the sheets of paper until she finally found the song Air had been referring to. When she pulled it out, she began to read through the lyrics, and pretty soon a memory entered her mind.

 

Kerstin sat up on the hotel bed she had been lying on when she heard the door unlock and open. She smiled slightly upon seeing the masked Ghoul dressed in a long black robe.

“Back from the interview, I see,” she said.

“Yep!” came the reply. It was rather cheerful in tone.

Kerstin sighed once, then turned to face the Ghoul as he set down the small bag he had been holding and sat down on the other bed which was a few feet away.

“Well, spill it, Aether. How was it?” she asked. “Did they ask the same-old questions as every other interviewer we’ve met?”

“Well...kinda. Yeah.” Aether rubbed his hands for a moment. “But towards the end it got… different.”

Kerstin blinked and tilted her head slightly to the side, confused yet intrigued at the same time. “...Different?”

“I-in a good way, I mean,” the Ghoul added quickly with a small wave of his hand.

“How so?”

“Well, it's apparently going to be Easter soon,” Aether said. He reached for the bag he had set down earlier. “So they gave us some stuff for the holiday.”

Kerstin frowned and raised an eyebrow, Now sitting fully upright. “They do realize that we're Satanists, right?” she stated.

“Doesn't mean that we can't enjoy some of the treats that are being sold this time of year. We don't have these back in Infestissumam.” The Ghoul reached into the bag, then paused for a moment. “Nice choice, by the way,” he said, clearly pleased with the fact that she had chosen to play some ABBA. He soon pulled out a small, bright yellow box, and upon opening it took out a piece, holding it out towards Kerstin. “Here you go!”

Kerstin took the Easter treat out of Aether’s hand and examined it. It was squishy, bright yellow (just like the box), and seemed to resemble a bird.

“What… are these?” she asked as Aether took out a bird for himself.

“I've been told that they're called ‘Peeps’,” Aether replied. “They're a marshmallow candy and are apparently very sweet.”

Kerstin sighed yet smiled as she lifted her head to look at Aether. “Aether, you know I prefer sour candy over sweet candy.”

“Couldn't hurt to at least try these,” the Ghoul remarked, smiling back. He reached up, lowered his hood, and took off his mask, revealing his face.

Kerstin have another sigh. “Alright, fine. I'll try it with you.”

“On the count of three, ‘kay? One. Two.”

On the third count, both of them took a bite of the marshmallow candy.

Kerstin raised her eyebrows after she had swallowed. “You know… they're actually not too bad…” she remarked.

But Aether made a face of disgust and shook his head from side to side. He reached over towards the table and grabbed a tissue from the box, spitting out the marshmallow candy.

“Yep. That guy was right. Way too sweet. Yuck.”

Kerstin laughed upon seeing Aether’s face. “Wow, Aether. You've fought monsters, seen excessive amounts of death and violence, and met the devil themself, and yet you can't even handle a tiny piece of marshmallow candy.”

Aether tossed the tissue into the trash, then met Kerstin’s eyes and folded his arms across his chest. “Oh, stop it, Kersty.”

Upon hearing the nickname, Kerstin glared at him, still smiling.

“Don't call me that.”

“You like the nickname and you know it!”

Kerstin was just about to open her mouth to make another remark, when a familiar tune suddenly began to play in her Testament:

You can dance  
You can jive  
Having the time of your life…

Kerstin turned back towards Aether, a smirk present on in her face. She knew that Aether could never ever resist the urge to dance whenever Dancing Queen came on.

And just like she thought, without warning, Aether bolted upright and began to dance. But it was more stomping than dancing, the shoes on Aether’s feet hitting the floor hard over and over.

Kerstin laughed again as she watched the Ghoul move around like a fool. “Okay, Stomping Queen, calm down,” she said, smiling. “You're going to wake up every person below us if you continue.”

You are the dancing queen  
Young and sweet  
Only seventeen  
Dancing queen  
Feel the beat from the tambourine

But it was as if the Ghoul was being commanded by the music to keep going, and he continued to stomp despite what Kerstin had said to him.

Kerstin wasn't angry, however. She continued to laugh at the Ghoul’s antics even as the hotel room around her became blurry and slowly morphed back into the cell.

Cadence’s laughing slowly subsided, but her smile did not disappear. As she attempted to calm herself down, she wiped the tears away from her eyes.

But this time, they were tears of joy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please check out the Crescendo Ask Blog on tumblr!


	13. Loyalty

(One night later)

Currently sitting in his chair, Alpha carefully set the candle down at his usual workplace, making sure to not let the tiny flame go out. After adjusting the candle’s position so that enough light covered the entirety of the desk, he picked up his pen, opened the large green book to where he had bookmarked it the last time he had been down here, and began to write.

There was nothing, absolutely nothing more important to him right now than getting closer to finishing this. However, at this rate, he would be forced to bring it on tour with him.

As the Ghoul figured out what each of the Enochian symbols meant, he mumbled the English translations to himself as he wrote them down in the book on his right. The names of the potions, however, could not be translated into English, so he was forced to use Latin for those instead.

“...Apparentia. Whoever consumes this… will forever look… the exact same way they had… when they first… drank this. Does not grant eternal life… as once believed.”

Alpha abruptly stopped after he finished writing the sentence, and after a moment he hesitated before slowly putting his pen down. He stared at the words he had just written down, reading them over and over.

Just like all the other Ghouls, both past and present, he'd tasted that potion. He still remembered its sweet taste; it was almost like honey. He still remembered being promised eternal life, only to witness a lowly clergy member die from old age right in front of his eyes just a few nights later. It was only then that the small note at the end had been added to that page in the book.  
And now, no matter how many times Papa would regenerate, the Ghoul would always look the same.

With a sigh, Alpha picked up his pen again and began to translate the ingredients that were required to make the potion. After completing this, he read over the words again. This potion hadn't been made in a while. Would they even have enough of every ingredient for when the time came to-

“Alpha…”

The Ghoul jumped in his seat, startled by the voice. His eyes widened. He recognized it immediately. 

“Oh no…” he mumbled. Not again.

“Alpha.” The voice repeated his name, this time in a tone that seemed to demand his attention.

Cautiously, Alpha turned towards the source of the sound. There, in the far left corner of the room was a figure, made barely visible by the dim light of the candle. He wore a tailored suit, and there was a mask covered in tiny spikes over his head. His eyes and mouth, however, were exposed, revealing his expression, which Alpha couldn't really seem to place. 

Alpha slowly stood up, keeping one hand on his chair. His body trembled slightly as he rose, although whether it was from fear or the slight decrease in the temperature of the room he did not know.

“P-... Puppet Master…” The Ghoul’s voice was hardly above a whisper.

The head moved slightly, the spikes covering the mask shimmering as it did so. Then, a smile spread across his dark purple lips.

“Alpha, it has been quite some time since we last spoke to each other, hasn't it?” Puppet Master held out a hand and beckoned the Ghoul towards him. “Please...come closer.”

Those last two words echoed in Alpha’s mind, repeating themselves over and over. Alpha’s hand began to lift off the chair. He no longer felt afraid. He suddenly felt...unperturbed. It was almost like he had been lost for so long and was finally found. His legs inched away from the table, bringing him closer to the other masked being. He wanted this feeling to last. He wanted to please the Master… His master. He wanted to obey his every command…

No.

Alpha abruptly stopped before he could reach Puppet Master. The thoughts of wanting to serve him and follow his orders left the Ghoul in the blink of an eye. No, Alpha thought to himself. He didn't want to obey. He was loyal to Papa, and only Papa. 

At that moment, he heard a familiar song resonate in his head. It was a song he and the others used to play when the Meliora era had just begun:

Old One  
Master  
All beauty lies within  
Old One  
Master  
All beauty lies within you…

Without warning, Alpha held up one hand, and immediately a small burst of flames appeared over his palm. The fire cast dark, inky shadows over his silver mask and made his eyes shine brightly. It also made Puppet Master more visible. For a moment, Alpha took notice of the silver pendant which resembled the alchemy symbol for mercury.

“Leave,” he demanded. “Or I'll turn you into a pile of ashes.”

Puppet Master's smile disappeared. His eyes glanced at the flame hovering over Alpha’s hand before refocusing on the Ghoul.

“Do it, then.” 

Alpha blinked, surprised by Puppet Master's response and how calmly the man had spoken to him. But after a moment, the Ghoul narrowed his eyes, glaring at the man across from him as he readied his magic. The flame slowly increased in size as more and more thoughts of anger and hatred raced through his head… But the Ghoul never sent the flame towards the other masked being.

Suddenly, Puppet Master's smile returned to his face.

“...You can't do it, can you Alpha?” he asked, his tone possibly hinting at the fact that he was mocking the Ghoul. “Because deep down… you don't actually wish to harm me.”

Alpha gasped when Puppet Master suddenly reached out and tightly grabbed his wrist. In that instant, both the fire near his hand and the tiny flame on the candle went out simultaneously, leaving the room pitch black. At the same time, the temperature of the room plummeted. Alpha shivered as the cold cut through his clerical garments.

“Y-you're wrong!” he chattered, trying his hardest to ignore the chill surrounding him. “I do not feel that way in the slightest. You're influencing my thoughts!”

Finding that he was able to move his arm, for there was suddenly no longer a hand holding it, he once again held up his hand to make another ball of fire materialize out of thin air. 

But no matter how hard he tried, nothing appeared over his hand.

“Oh, I can assure you, Alpha…” Puppet Master's voice echoed in the darkness, surrounding the shaking Ghoul. “...those thoughts are entirely your own.”

Without warning, Alpha felt hands grab hold of the horns on the top of his mask. He cried out as he was pulled further into the inky blackness and tried to fight back. But he was powerless to do so. He gritted his teeth as he was suddenly tossed to the side and hit the ground hard.

“Think about it…” Puppet Master spoke again. “...what does Emeritus and the rest of your entire clergy refer to you and your brothers as?”

Alpha groaned as he tried to push himself off the floor, his head suddenly beginning to pound. 

“You are referred to as a Nameless Ghoul. Nameless!” Puppet Master's voice sounded closer now. “Nameless implies that you have no identity, that you are nothing at all!”

The hands tugged at his mask again, pulling Alpha back so hard that the mask was squashing his face. The words ‘You are nothing’ rang in his ears.

“Doesn't that upset you?” Puppet Master was now right behind him, his breath warm in contrast with the surrounding air. His hands slowly peeled the mask away from Alpha's face.“Doesn't that make you furious…”

It was then that the Puppet Master whispered something to him. A name. Alpha’s eyes widened. It wasn't just any name. It was a name he hadn’t been called in a long time.

“You used to be someone,” Puppet Master continued. “And Emeritus took it all away from you. He turned you into nothing. To him you're only a pawn leading him to riches and fame.”

The hands suddenly dropped the silver mask onto the floor, and Alpha finally found the strength to stand. As he stood, he could hear a song still resonating in his head. But it was nothing like the song before.

The winter sky is clear  
Passing faceless silhouettes  
Counting wasted years  
Like burnt out cigarettes…

What was this? This wasn't one of their songs.

Where are you now?  
I have to carry the cross

Alpha quickly shook his head and turned to look behind him. Upon doing so, he found himself face-to-face with Puppet Master once more. The Ghoul took a deep breath, trying to remain calm.

Where are you now?  
You're the greatest loss

“It was my choice,” Alpha said, still trembling slightly from the cold. “I allowed him to take it all away.”

Puppet Master's lips curled into almost a snarl, and without warning he grabbed hold of the Ghoul’s throat, his grip tightening at an alarming rate.

“A rather poor choice on your part,” he spat. “Like you even had one in the first place!”

But then the snarl disappeared. Puppet Master stared at Alpha for a moment as he struggled in his grasp. Slowly, his grip loosened, granting the Ghoul the ability to breathe.

“But I can give everything back to you,” he said, lowering his voice. “All you have to do is obey me.”

Once more, the words echoed in Alpha’s mind. I can give everything back...just obey me.

‘Yes...yes, I want to!’ Alpha’s mind screamed. ‘I'll obey! I’ll do everything you ask of me! I'll-!’

But then he remembered something: the Ghoul recalled all those times he had pledged his allegiance to Papa and vowed to serve him until the end. He recalled all those times Papa had helped him, and also all those times the dark pope had introduced him to the audience. The Ghoul shut his eyes and gripped his hair as he turned away from Puppet Master, a more familiar song now playing in his head:

Put your hands up and reach for the sky  
Cry for absolution  
You'll be down on your knees and you'll cry  
Cry for absolution

“F-forgive me, Papa!” he cried out, collapsing onto the ground. “I have sinned against you!”

All those things that you desire  
You will find here in the fire

“Alpha, you want to escape his tyranny,” Puppet Master remarked. “You want to be free from his control.”

Come closer to me  
Come closer to me  
Come closer to me and be truly free

The two songs clashed together inside Alpha’s head, each one attempting to play louder than the other. His nails dug into his scalp as the pain in his head grew without mercy. The differing beats, instruments, and voices were too much for him...

“No!”

Feeling a surge of anger rushing through him, Alpha boldly stood upright and turned in Puppet Master's direction, prepared to make the masked man pay for putting him through this suffering. But before the Ghoul could do anything, Puppet Master's spikey gloved fist collided with his mouth. 

Alpha covered his mouth with both hands as he stumbled backwards, his back quickly bumping into what he assumed to be the stone wall of the room. When he cracked open his eyes, he saw Puppet Master making his way towards him.

He wanted to move, but the Ghoul could do nothing but tremble. He didn't know what was wrong with his mouth, but whatever the problem was, it hurt. 

He sunk to his knees as Puppet Master got even closer, now just a few feet in front of him. The Ghoul shut his eyes and turned away, waiting for another blow…

“...Alpha... Alpha!”

Alpha’s eyes shot open. The darkness was gone, and it was no longer cold. Puppet Master was gone. Now it was Papa who was kneeling down in front of him, his gloved hands resting on the Ghoul’s arms.

“Alpha, I overheard the screams...Are you alright?” the dark pope asked, his voice filled with concern.

The Fire Ghoul stared at his leader in silence, lowering his hands while recalling everything that Puppet Master had told him. No, he was wrong. Papa was the one he served and would be the only one he'd serve until the end of his nights.

“I'm f- mmn!” Alpha shut his eyes again and clamped a hand over his mouth as a terrible pain ignited in his mouth near one incisor tooth.

Papa's eyes widened upon seeing his Ghoul in pain, and he delicately placed his hand over Alpha’s.

“I won't ask what happened, but… do you want to have that checked out?”

Alpha cracked his eyes open, staring at Papa for a moment before casting a glance at the books he had been working on just minutes ago.

“You can get back to the book later.” Emeritus carefully helped the Ghoul to his feet. “We'll need to head downtown. I'll ask Air to drive us.” The dark pope then met Alpha’s eyes and smiled slightly. “You'll be alright, Alpha. Now don't talk. I don't want you to be in anymore pain than you are now.”

Alpha moved his hand away from his face a little as he stared at Papa. Papa did care about him. He didn't see him and his brothers as pawns.

As the dark pope led him out of the room, Alpha recalled a familiar, comforting line from one of their songs.

Can't you see that you're lost without me?


	14. Struck Down

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize that this took so long!

They were gone a lot longer than Alpha had hoped. The dentists had been able to take Alpha in immediately, but the operation took a long time.

His incisor tooth had to be extracted and replaced with a silver implant. It hadn't hurt, though. The dentists were wise enough to give him a shot that numbed his mouth so he wouldn't feel the pain that came with the operation. The numbness still lingered in his mouth as he once again carefully felt for the piece of silver with the tip of his tongue. His mask rested in his lap.

“The dentists told me you won't be able to eat much for a while…”

The Ghoul turned his head to look at Papa, who had chosen to sit in the seat next to him.

“...and it'll take a bit of time getting used to talking with the implant…”

Alpha silently exhaled through his nose as he listened to Papa speak. The dentists had already told all of this to him. He didn't need Papa to repeat everything. Besides, he didn't exactly mind not being able to eat and talk for a bit. He could still continue working on the books.

Papa sighed. “Alpha, I… I don’t believe you should work on those books for a while.”

Immediately, Alpha turned to stare at Emeritus, his eyes wide and his mouth hanging open with shock.

“I know it's an important task for you, but…” The dark pope paused then sighed again. “...but you've been isolating yourself in that room for weeks. You've been abstaining from most of your clerical duties, and after what happened tonight…” He turned, meeting the Ghoul’s eyes. “...I can't risk you getting even more injured. The tour is starting soon, and I need you in the best condition that you can possibly be.”

Alpha closed his mouth and gave another sigh as he rested his head on the seat. He turned his head slightly and stared out the window through the tinted glass, watching the people, buildings, and streets go by. 

Eventually, the car arrived back at their home. Air parked the car and turned off the engine before getting out and opening the door Papa was seated by.

“Thank you, Air,” the dark pope said, getting out of the car. “I know this was all rather sudden…”

Air smiled underneath his mask, then gave a quick glance towards Alpha before meeting Emeritus’ eyes again.

“Anything for a brother,” he replied with a nod of his head.

Papa smiled and nodded back at the tall Ghoul, then turned to look back at Alpha, who was still sitting in the car staring out the window.

“Fire, unless you intend on sleeping in the car, I suggest you get out now,” he said, giving a chuckle.

Alpha jumped in his seat when he heard his name being called, then unbuckled his seatbelt with a sigh and got out of the car as well. He did not look at the dark pope once as he trudged up the stairs with Emeritus beside him. Air went back to the car to return it to the place where it was always stored.

Papa stared at Alpha for a bit before his smile widened upon seeing the look on the Ghoul’s face. He had just thought up something funny.

“Aw, why the long face, Alpha?” he asked. He then chuckled. “You know, tooth be told, I'm glad the operation went quicker than I had expected.”

Alpha said nothing and only rolled his eyes at Papa's terrible pun.

“Hey, you want to know what the dentist said to the golfer?” Papa asked, still grinning. “He said ‘Sir, it appears you have a hole in one!’”

Alpha sighed as Emeritus laughed at his own joke. The Ghoul was clearly unamused, but the dark pope paid him no mind.

“W-what do you call two dentists who live on opposite sides of the world? Molar opposites!”

Alpha pressed his lips together and glared at Papa before opening the door and storming inside. This was already getting really annoying. Why couldn't he just stop making jokes for five seconds?!

“Oh, c’mon! That was a good one!” Papa exclaimed, following the Ghoul down the hall.

No, Alpha thought to himself. It really wasn't. Focusing on the hallway in front of him, the Ghoul stuck his hands into his pockets and trudged on, walking a little faster this time.

“H-hey hey! Wait up, Alpha!” Papa yelled, trying to get his laughter under control as he quickened his pace to keep up. He smiled when he finally got to be beside the Ghoul once more, and turned his head to look at him. The dark pope remained silent for a bit before speaking once again.

“Am I annoying you?” he asked. The grin on his face did not disappear, even when Alpha immediately nodded his head in reply.

“Alright, alright. One more joke and then I'll stop. I promise.”

***

Cadence’s eyes were shut tightly as she laid curled up on the floor, the folder Air had given her the night before currently beside her. She had been looking over one of the songs when her head had suddenly begun to hurt again. But something was different this time.

She could feel a dull pain on multiple areas of her body, as if someone had punched her numerous times.

“...Why?” she asked out loud in a voice hinting at she was about to cry. Her fingers tangled in her hair. “Why?”

“C’mon, get up you freak!” a voice of a teenage male yelled from somewhere behind her.

Mary gasped as she felt hands roughly grab her arms and yank her off the ground. Her eyes shot open and, despite the tears in her eyes, she could see that she was back outside in Meliora. A group of four teenage boys surrounded her. She opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out.

One of the boys grinned as he stared at her. “Can’t fight back, can’t defend herself, can’t stop herself from crying…” He proceeded to list everything that Mary just couldn’t to right; every single one of her flaws that he could notice. “You just can’t do anything well. Just like your last name, Cantwell, suggests.”

The boy behind Mary snickered. “Mary Can’t-do-anything-well,” he said mockingly before shoving her back down to the ground.

Mary gritted her teeth as she hit the ground, her impact with the concrete sidewalk causing her to scrape the palms of her hands as she landed. She shook for a moment as she attempted to push herself back up, but it wasn’t long before one of the boys walked over and dealt a swift blow to her face with his foot, knocking her down again.

“Mary Can’t-do-anything-well,” one of them repeated, laughing. 

Mary groaned and coughed repeatedly as she attempted to recover from that last hit. As she struggled to get up once again, the boys continued to repeat the name and make fun of her eyes, throwing insults at her left and right. But her body hurt too much from the constant pummeling, and it wasn't long before she collapsed back onto the ground, the four boys clearly amused by her struggle.

“S-stop…” Mary pleaded, her voice barely audible as she covered her head with her arms. “Stop…”

Slowly, the sound of the boys’ mocking laughter began to die off as they walked away from her, leaving her alone on the sidewalk. But Mary didn't get up. She couldn't bring herself to, and instead continued to cry, her tears streaming down her bruised and cut face. This wasn't fair, she thought to herself. It wasn't her choice to have these purple eyes. It wasn't her choice to be so different. Why did she have to suffer like this?! Why did no one even bother to help her?! Why did no one care?!

Suddenly, she heard the sound of footsteps coming closer and closer. The person’s shadow fell over her as they stopped, looking down at her.

“You...y-you gonna beat me up too?” Mary asked in a shaky voice, not daring to look behind her to see just who was standing there.

The man stayed silent for a moment, then knelt down, keeping his eyes on her.

“What makes you think I would do something as senseless as that?” he asked.

“B-because everyone else does it! They h-hate me because I'm...different.”

Mary flinched when she felt the man gently touch her arm.

“...If I may ask, child…” he said. “In what way exactly are you... different?”

Mary opened her eyes just slightly. He didn't know? “I-It's my eyes,” she responded. “E-everyone says I'm a freak just because they look different. They're…” She paused, fearing what the man would say once she told him. “...purple.”

Again, the man was silent, but only for a moment. “...You know what I think?” he asked. “I think they're all doing this to you simply because they're afraid.”  
Mary blinked, feeling slightly confused. “...They're scared of me?” she asked.

“They're afraid because the thing that’s so different about you is something beyond their understanding. Fear is a natural thing, and people are afraid of those who are different from them. They prefer things that are similar to them and that they are able to understand, shying away from everything else.” The man paused for a moment, then gave a sigh that sounded rather forlorn. 

“That’s the exact reason why I created the rule that no one is to look upon me,” he said. “Not until I’ve decided that they’re ready to face the truth.”

Mary’s eyes widened slightly. A rule that no one was to see him? Was he... She glanced up at a nearby stone statue of Meliora’s leader that was nearby. “A-are you…”

“Yes, child,” he said. “I am Papa Emeritus the Third.”

Mary gasped, a plethora of thoughts racing through her mind. Meliora’s own highest of authority, the dark pope himself, was right beside her, his hand on her arm… The girl felt tears once again beginning to form in her eyes as a small smile finally curled her lips. 

“P-Papa… Emeritus… the Third. I-I’m honored…” She then frowned, suddenly realizing what she must’ve looked like: all beaten, bruised, and covered in dirt with her clothes slightly torn. “...a-and sorry that you have to see me like this…”

“No apologies are necessary, my dear. And just ‘Papa’ will do.” The dark pope brushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear with his gloved hand and smiled. “Now then, would you mind telling me your name?”

Mary blushed slightly, suddenly feeling as if she had been put in the spotlight. When she spoke, her voice shook and she stuttered.

“M-my n-name is…” She took a breath in an attempt to calm herself. “...is M-Mary…”

The dark pope’s smile widened even more.

“That’s quite a lovely name.”

“C-Cadence, I’m here!”

The young acolyte shut her eyes and groaned as the pain from earlier reignited in her head.

“I’m here! Don’t worry, I’ve got you.”

Slowly, Cadence opened her eyes as the pain steadily faded away. When she glanced at her surroundings she found herself on the bed in her cell. Her eyes widened slightly when she saw who had put her there.

“S-Special?”

His silver mask still on his face, the Ghoul stared back at her, his green eyes showing his worry.

“...You okay?” he asked, his voice slightly hushed.

Cadence groaned quietly in response, rubbing her temple with one hand as she sat up. “I-I think so…” she responded, trying her best to sound convincing.

Quietly, Special sat down beside Cadence. “What happened?” he asked turning to face her.

“I-I was just looking over the songs, a-and when I read over one of the lyrics I… I got a splitting headache and remembered when Papa and I met for the first time… in this life.”

Special carefully collected the sheet music and picked up the pieces of paper along with the folder from off the floor. “Which song?”

Cadence took the music and folder from the Ghoul and quickly found the song she had been looking at before the memory had come to her. She showed the piece of paper to Special and pointed to the lyric which had brought the memory back to her.

It was a song called “Stand by Him”, and the line Cadence was pointing to read “The witch hammer struck her down.”

***

Papa stared at the door to the potion room he had found Alpha in just hours ago, quietly thinking to himself. 

“You know what? I change my mind.”

He turned to face the Fire Ghoul, who was still standing beside him.

“Alpha, I want you to grab the Factorem Elixir. I’m afraid we’re going to need it.”


	15. Two Essential Potions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... now that Ghost apparently has an official Tumblr...
> 
> HI PAPA IF YOU ARE READING THIS I HOPE YOU AND THE GHOULS ARE HAVING A GREAT DAY! THANKS FOR TAKING THE TIME TO READ THIS FANFIC OF MINE AND THANKS FOR ALL THAT YOU DO FOR US FANS! YOU ARE AMAZING AND I LOVE YOU!
> 
> Now just sit back, get comfy, and enjoy this latest chapter! :)

A worried expression showed clearly on Papa's face upon seeing that Cadence was crying. He cast a glance towards Special, who was now standing near him next to the wall. “What happened?” the dark pope asked.

Special sighed and closed his eyes, his shoulders sagging slightly. “She had another memory come back to her,” the Ghoul answered. “It was one from this lifetime.” He turned to look at Cadence, who was still seated on the bed. “And apparently that wasn't the only one she's had tonight. She's had multiple come back to her in the span of just a few hours. Her headaches have been getting close to excruciating.”

Emeritus exhaled and followed Special’s gaze. His eyes lingered on Cadence, but the young acolyte did not raise her head to look at him. She just continued to wipe away her tears with her sleeve. 

“So it's worse than we thought…” he mumbled to himself. After a moment, the dark pope turned to face Alpha, who had the Factorem Elixir carefully tucked underneath one arm. “Change of plans, Alpha. I believe it would be best if we hold off on having Cadence remember this one until these headaches of hers become less frequent.”

But as the dark pope and the Fire Ghoul began to head back towards the main door, Cadence abruptly raised her head and stood up. “N-no!”

Papa and Alpha simultaneously stopped in their tracks upon hearing Cadence speak and turned to look at her.  
“I-I can take it,” Cadence said, her face hinting at just how determined she suddenly was.

Papa sighed and took a couple steps towards her. Alpha began to follow him, but quickly stopped himself when the dark pope held his arm out in front of him.

“Ghuleh…” Papa stopped walking when he was about a foot away from where Cadence was. “...I know you want to get out of here as soon as possible, but rushing things could have negative effects on your mind. And considering how bad and frequent your headaches have gotten, we might already be going too quickly.”

“Papa, please.” Cadence stared up at Emeritus with and almost pleading expression. “It… it's not that I want to get out of here, it's that I just want my questions answered! I know these forgotten memories hold the answers I'm looking for.” Without warning, she reached out and grabbed both of Papa's hands. “Please… just let me remember this one.”

Emeritus opened his mouth to object, but quickly closed it again, stopping himself from speaking. He stared at Cadence with a worried expression on his face.

“...Are you certain?” he asked, suddenly lowering his voice so that only she could hear him.

Cadence immediately nodded her head in response as she released her hold on his hands. “Yes.”

“Alright.” The dark pope raised his right hand and motioned towards himself with two fingers. “Alpha, come here,” he ordered, raising his voice again.

Immediately, the Ghoul obeyed the command and walked over until he was standing right beside Papa.

“You may show it to her,” Papa said, turning to look at Alpha and nodding his head.

Alpha nodded back, then turned to face Cadence once more. Slowly, he opened the book, being careful not to damage it, before handing it over to Cadence.

Cadence took the book from Alpha and immediately stared at the Enochian symbols, attempting to read it. But nothing on the pages made sense to her. She raised her head. “I-I don't get this…” she said, shaking her head.

“Give it a little more time. It'll come back to you,” Papa remarked, clasping his hands behind his back as he waited patiently.

Once again, Cadence looked down at the book and tried to make sense of the symbols. She still didn't seem to understand them. However, the longer she looked at them, the more she began to realize that she had seen these symbols somewhere before…

The young acolyte cried out as pain reignited in her head once more. Abruptly, she dropped the book, her hands flying to her head as it fell to the floor. Alpha immediately tried to run over and catch it, but Papa held out his arm and held the Ghoul back.

Shutting her eyes due to the pain, the young acolyte attempted to stand up. But she immediately fell back onto the floor beside the book. Only when the pain finally subsided did she open her eyes once more.

Once again, everything appeared different. She quickly recognized the area she was in as one of the hallways in the castle during the Opus era, her first lifetime. She opened her mouth to yell for someone to help her, but quickly remembered that she couldn't talk ever since having her throat slit. With one hand, she felt her neck where she recalled the knife had been, only to feel a long scar instead of a bandage. She tried to push herself off the ground, but immediately realized that she couldn't, feeling as if all her energy was slipping away.

“Mistress!”

Elizabeth turned her head just in time to see the Earth Ghoul, his black robes flapping as he ran over towards her, holding something in each hand.

“There isn't much time!” Earth said, kneeling down beside her.

Elizabeth desperately wished she could still talk. What was happening? she wanted to ask the Ghoul. Is everyone else alright?

It was then that the countess noticed what the Ghoul was holding in his hands. In each of them was a small glass bottle with a strange liquid inside. The liquid in the one in his right hand was clear, like water. The liquid in the one he was holding in his left was a deep purple. Elizabeth’s eyes narrowed with confusion. Were those… potions?

Earth frantically glanced between the two bottles in his hands, seemingly unsure of something. “Oh Belial, which one is it?!” Elizabeth heard him mumble. Finally, he put down the bottle with the clear liquid and opened the one with the purple potion. “You must drink this, Mistress,” the Ghoul said, the urgency clearly present in his voice as he helped her tilt her head back. “Papa has ordered it.”

Elizabeth could smell the potion long before the bottle was pressed to her lips. It certainly wasn't the most pleasant of smells, but now was definitely not the time to complain. The countess closed her eyes, secretly dreading the awful taste that was sure to accompany the bad smell.

But then she heard Earth curse under his breath and abruptly pull the bottle away from her.  
“This is Memoria, not Apparentia!” she heard him mumble. 

Opening her eyes, Elizabeth watched as the Ghoul frantically struggled to put the lid back onto the potion bottle with shaking hands before placing it back down and picking up the bottle with the clear potion inside. Without saying another word, Earth put the bottle to her lips and tilted it, allowing the clear liquid to dribble into her mouth. The potion was sweet, but not in an overwhelming way. Elizabeth closed her eyes once more as she slowly proceeded to gulp the potion down.

She had only taken a few sips before Earth suddenly groaned loudly in pain and abruptly released his hold on her, the potion bottle shattering on the floor as he dropped to the ground, clutching his chest.

Elizabeth’s eyes widened upon seeing the Ghoul fall to the floor. Mustering up what little strength she could, she proceeded to crawl towards him on her hands and knees. But when the countess felt something sharp cut her hand, she immediately recoiled and stopped in her tracks. Looking down, she saw that a small shard of glass from the bottle had cut her. But her focus quickly shifted away from the bleeding cut on her palm when she noticed something strange around the outside of her hand - a wispy silver glow.

Her vision suddenly blurred. There was a sharp pain in her chest. Her ears were ringing. What little energy she had left seemed to leave her, causing the countess to collapse onto the floor. The pain spread to her arms, her hands, her feet, everywhere, the silver glow seeming to travel with it. Her breathing quickened as she struggled to get enough air into her lungs, but her vision only became blurrier and blurrier as the pain continued to increase. 

Shutting her eyes as tight as she possibly could, she opened her mouth in a silent scream as the glow covering her body became brighter, enveloping her in light.

Cadence gasped loudly, her eyes snapping back open as she finally came to her senses. Glancing around the room, she once again saw the familiar walls of the cell, as well as Papa, Alpha, and Special all staring back at her.

Papa was the first to speak.

“Are you alright, Cadence?” he asked, taking a step forward.

Cadence blinked a few times, trying to process what she had just seen. After a moment, she nodded her head in reply.

“Tell us. What did you see?”

Hesitating for only a moment, the young acolyte proceeded to tell the three of them everything that she saw. When she was done, it was Special’s turn to ask her a question.

“Cadence, you remember what I told you about regeneration?” he asked. “And how there was a way to stop it from altering your appearance and memories?”

Cadence nodded her head in reply.

“Those two potions, Memoria and Apparentia, are the answer. Memoria prevents your memories from becoming altered with each regeneration, and Apparentia allows your appearance to remain the same no matter how many times Papa regenerates.”

Now Cadence was a little confused. “But… the Earth ghoul gave me Apparentia. Why is everything still changing?”

“Not everything,” Papa remarked, holding up one finger. “The potion did work, but it wasn't enough to stop your entire body from changing.” He then lowered his hand as he met Cadence's eyes. “Think, Ghuleh. What's the one thing that has remained consistent throughout all three of your lifetimes?”

It took the young acolyte a bit to think back and come up with her answer, but when she finally did and hand flew to her face, resting on the side of her mask.

“...My eyes…” she answered. “They've always been this color.”

Papa nodded his head and smiled, proud that she was able to figure it out on her own. He then turned to face Alpha. “Well then, our work here is done for now, Alpha. You may go now.”

Alpha smiled and gave a quick bow to the dark pope before exiting the cell, the Factorem Elixir tucked underneath one arm.

“Papa?”

Emeritus turned to look back at Cadence. “Yes, Ghuleh?”

“If...if the Apparentia potion allows you to keep your appearance...why don't you take it?”

Cadence watched as the dark pope's face fell. He lingered in his spot for a moment before suddenly turning towards the door. The young acolyte’s eyes darted back and forth between him and Special as Emeritus opened the door. But he did not immediately exit the cell.

The dark pope gave a forlorn sigh.

“The potions don't work on me, Cadence,” he replied.


	16. Levisomnus

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A bit of a shorter one. These next few are going to be REALLY long but I can assure you that THE WAIT WILL BE WORTH IT!!!!

Special was a bit surprised that the potion room could hold so many ingredients. He hardly ever set foot in here. However, with all the shelves and the giant mixing cauldron, it was a bit cramped, and with two Ghouls and an anti-pope added to the space, Special had been forced to press himself against the wall. He watched as Papa paced back and forth with his hands clasped behind his back, the sound of the dark pope's footsteps on the cold stone floor echoing quietly in the small space.

“If only…” Emeritus said out loud. “If only there was a way to make the pain just a little more bearable for her…”

Special then glanced over at Alpha, who was seated at the desk flipping through the pages of the Factorem Elixir, searching for a specific potion he thought might work. After a while, the Fire Ghoul turned to look at Papa and called him over, his ability to talk made difficult due to the implant.

“You think you've found one?” the dark pope asked, an eager, hopeful smile appearing on his face as he walked over to stand beside the Ghoul. He peered over Alpha's shoulder as the page was presented to him. But he then frowned and shook his head. “Alpha, you know my memory of the Enochian language has all but faded from my mind by now.”

With that, Special reached over and picked up Alpha's translated version of the Factorem Elixir from off the table and opened it. “Which page?” he asked.

Papa glanced down at the page number, which was written in Roman numeral form. “Fifty-three,” he answered.

Special quickly flipped to the page number, skimming through the text once he arrived. But after a moment, he shook his head.

“No, not this one,” he said, lifting his head. “Ossium only dulls the pain of broken bones.”

Disappointed, Alpha gave a sigh before continuing to look through the ancient book. A bit more time passed before he stopped at yet another potion and showed it to Papa.

“Page seventy-nine, Special,” the dark pope said.

Once again, Special turned to the page that Papa had told him to go to. After reading for a bit, he smiled.

“Hey, this one might work!” Special exclaimed. “Cephalagia - relieves pain caused by severe headaches.” But after reading the rest of what was on the page, his face fell again and he shook his head. “No, wait. Nevermind.”

“What's wrong?” Papa asked.

“It says here at the bottom of the page that it does not relieve pain caused by recalling memories from previous lives.” Special sighed, then raised his head to look at Alpha. “Keep looking, Alpha. I'm sure there's something in there we could use.”

The Fire Ghoul nodded, then continued to flip through the pages. But as time went on, the three of them found nothing that would give them what they were looking for.

“Well…” Special sighed, closing the book he was holding and setting it down on the desk as he turned to face Papa. “How much more does she have to know, exactly?”

“...Not much, actually,” the dark pope answered after thinking for a moment. “Just a couple more nights worth. But everything still won't be ready by then… And we can't just have her wandering around the halls while we get everything prepared. It would ruin the surprise for her...”

Alpha stopped turning the pages and paused, suddenly coming up with an idea. He flipped back towards the beginning of the book.

“You thought of something, Alpha?” Papa asked. He curiously peered over the Ghoul’s shoulder, watching him turn the pages. When Alpha finally stopped and pointed to the page number, he glanced down to look at it. “Special, page twenty-one, please.”

Quickly, Special snatched the book he had been holding earlier from off the table and opened it, immediately flipping to the page Papa had told him to go to. When he got there and began reading over the words, confusion showed on his face underneath his mask.

“This is...Levisomnus,” he said. Special then lifted his head. “...It makes whoever drinks it fall into a deep sleep.”

Papa turned his head and met Alpha's eyes. “...Are you suggesting that we let Cadence remain asleep until things are ready?” he asked. When Alpha nodded his head in reply, the dark pope thought to himself for a moment in silence. “Well, she has been through quite a lot these past few nights… a long slumber could be good for her…” He then lifted his head and turned to look at Special. “Special, are there any side effects of the potion that we should be wary of?”

Special looked down and read through the text again. “...Other than the person who consumes it having long, vivid dreams? Nothing.” 

“How long do the effects of the potion last?”

“It all depends on how much of each of the ingredients we use. The amounts listed here are meant for a potion lasting a full night.” He quickly glanced down at a note at the bottom of the page that he had suddenly just noticed. “But she’ll have to be fed during the time she’s asleep.”

“That will not be a problem,” Papa replied, waving a hand dismissively. “The Sisters can handle that.” The dark pope then lowered his hand. “And just how long will it take to make this potion?”

“Seems it’ll take two whole nights,” Special answered.

Papa nodded his head and smiled after a moment. “That’ll be plenty of time.”

Placing the book back down onto the table, Special hesitated for a moment before speaking again. 

“If… if it’s alright with you…” he said. “I could… make the potion for you guys…”

A look of surprise appeared on Papa’s face upon hearing the Ghoul’s suggestion.

“Are you sure?” the dark pope asked. “Potion making is not as easy as it sounds, Special.”

“Alpha could help me. He made plenty of potions during the Infestissumam era.”

Emeritus pressed his lips together, carefully taking the time to make his decision. After a moment, he turned and once again met Alpha’s eyes. “Will you help him?” he asked the Fire Ghoul.

Special beamed underneath his mask when Alpha nodded his head. He clasped his hands behind his back and rocked back and forth on his feet for a moment. “So?” he asked, meeting Papa’s eyes. “When can the two of us start?”

“As soon as you two want,” Papa answered. “You have my permission to make this potion.”


	17. A Little More Information

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY! AFTER MORE THAN A MONTH! HERE YOU GO GUYS!

(Two nights later)

The knocking on the door surprised Cadence, awakening her just as she was beginning to fall asleep. She sat up in bed and glanced around the candle-lit cell for a moment, wondering if she had just been hearing things. No one had visited her this late in the night before…Regardless, the young acolyte turned towards the metal door.

“Come in,” she said, curious as to who it was standing on the other side. Special usually visited her pretty late. Was it him? Or had Earth decided to bring Liam down so the munchkin kitten could visit with her again?

The door unlocked and swung open slowly, and before long the person who had been standing on the other side walked in. When Cadence saw who had entered, a mixture of emotions seemed to play across her face. There was joy, curiosity, and, for some odd reason, a hint of relief.

“Papa…”

The dark pope smiled as he quietly shut the door behind him, maintaining eye contact with the young girl the entire time. As he walked over towards Cadence, she got up off the bed and stood up next to it.

“Are you doing well tonight, Cadence?” he asked, stopping when he was about a foot in front of her. The flame on the nearby candle cast light on his face and made his mismatched eyes shine.

Cadence nodded her head in reply. “I am, Papa. Thanks for asking.”

Nodding, Emeritus clasped his hands together behind his back. “...How have your headaches been?”

Now Cadence's face fell, but only just slightly. The young acolyte tilted her head down a little.

“They've… They're still pretty frequent. And the pain hasn't lessened at all.” Cadence sighed quietly. “I just wish that…”

Papa’s smile disappeared upon hearing Cadence's answer, and when she lowered her head he reached out and gently placed his hand on her shoulder.

“Hey, look at me,” he murmured. The dark pope waited until Cadence lifted her head and found his gaze again before continuing. “Everything's going to be alright, Cadence. It's almost over. Just a few more nights and then you're going to be out of here.”

Cadence stared into the dark pope's mismatched eyes as he gazed back at her, and before long she felt a sudden unexpected wave of sadness wash over her. Without warning, the young acolyte tightly wrapped her arms around Emeritus and pulled him closer, shutting her eyes tightly as she pressed her forehead to his chest.

“Wh- Ghuleh, what's the matter?” Papa asked, a mixture of worry and confusion showing on his face.  
Cadence sniffled as she lifted her head again.

“I'm sorry,” she murmured, blinking rapidly to prevent herself from crying as Papa gently cupped her cheek with one gloved hand. “It's just that… every moment in here without you just feels like an eternity to me…”

Emeritus furrowed his brow upon seeing that Cadence was trying not to cry, her words making his heart ache a little. Keeping his eyes locked on hers, his hand moved down to her jawline, his thumb gently caressing her upper lip as the beautiful lavender irises gazed back up at him. With a sigh, he closed his eyes and leaned forward.

“I would be lying if I said I didn't feel the same…” he whispered. He pet her head affectionately, the other arm wrapping around her waist as his lips brushed against hers. Oh how he wished he could just stay here with her in this cell, providing the comfort she so desperately yearned for every night until this was all over. “Cadence…” he nearly moaned, holding her tighter against him before his lips finally closed over hers. It was a small kiss, soft and delicate like the little thing she was, and he hesitated before pulling away, his gloved hands smoothing over her brown hair and gently brushing against her ears as he gazed back down at her.

“Take off your mask,” he whispered. “Let me look at you.”

The young acolyte immediately obliged, reaching back to untie it. Upon removing the mask, she let go of it, letting it drop to the floor.

Papa sighed upon seeing Cadence's entire face revealed to him, his eyes taking in every detail he could in the candlelight. “Ghuleh…” He leaned forward again, placing kisses on her forehead, on her cheeks, her chin, the tip of her nose, and finally between her eyes.

“Sei così bella. Non posso solo aiutarmi...,” he murmured before kissing her full on the lips again. The kiss was hungrier this time, more full of passion, but he held himself back a little just in case Cadence wasn't okay with it. He wouldn't go all out unless she wanted him to. But she allowed him to dominate her, and before long the two of them found themselves on the bed. Without saying a word, Cadence wrapped her arms around the dark pope in a tight embrace as he placed a kiss on her neck.

“Papa…”

Emeritus tilted his head slightly so he could meet Cadence's gaze again, tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear as he did so. “Yes?”

The young acolyte sniffled as she blinked rapidly to once again keep herself from crying. Slowly, she averted her eyes.

“I...I should've listened to you. I shouldn't have looked at that song…” She lifted her head once more after some hesitation, her voice now sounding on the verge of tears. “...I’m sorry.”

But to the girl’s surprise, a soft smile curled his lips.

“Cadence, we all make mistakes.” Papa brushed her bangs aside to expose her forehead and planted a light kiss on it. “The important thing is that we learn from them and don’t make the same ones again.”

He gently placed a kiss on her nose before pulling back once more, sitting up straight as Cadence wiped her eyes with her sleeve.

“Ghuleh, I have something that will help with the headaches,” he said. He reached into his suit jacket and produced a small vial with a silvery liquid, carefully handing it to Cadence a moment later.

Cadence observed the vial for a moment before meeting Papa’s eyes again. “...When should I take it?” she asked.

“Whenever you want. But it takes only five minutes to go into effect, and…” The dark pope paused for a few seconds. “...there’s some information I need to tell you before you take it.”

Nodding her head, Cadence placed the vial onto the table beside the candle. “I’m listening,” she said, curious as to what exactly the dark pope was going to say.

Again, there was silence. Emeritus stared at his gloved hands, his mismatched eyes showing a wide range of emotions all at once.

“After you...died the first time...When Gabriel slit your throat…” He seemed to struggle to find the right words as he talked. “...there was a lot you didn’t get to see.”  
With a sigh, he slowly removed the glove on his right hand, and for the first time Cadence noticed a plain silver ring on his ring finger. ‘Lavana,’ she thought to herself, her heart aching a little as she recalled the memories from her first life.

“...We managed to catch the angels again before they could harm anyone else,” Papa continued. “Then, once everything was over, a trial was held in the throne room. But it wasn’t just for the damage and death they had all caused.” He turned and met Cadence’s eyes once again. “They had made numerous potions illegally.”

Cadence’s eyes widened with shock. Illegally? “W-what did they use them for?” she asked.

“Countless things. The last time they had been imprisoned, before your death, they had made Memoria and Apparentia without permission. Back then had overheard that only you, Lavana, Asmodeus, and the five men I had selected to become the original Ghouls were to receive the potions, and they weren’t very happy about that. But what we hadn't known was that...they had also made other potions to give themselves incredible powers.”

He paused for a moment, doing his best to recall the events as best he could.

“...We knew that only one of them could’ve been able to read the language in the book. The problem was that we didn’t know which of them could’ve done it. We did our best to pry the answer from them, but none of them would talk. Then…” 

Another pause. “...right before his sentence was about to be executed, Gabriel blurted out who it was. Raphael had done it.”

Cadence was taken aback slightly upon hearing the revelation, but she quickly began feeling a little suspicious. “...How do you know he was telling the truth?” she asked. “How do you know that he wasn’t just putting the blame on him?”

Papa turned his head to look at Cadence, his face showing that he was being completely serious as he met her eyes.

“Cadence, in all of Gabriel’s years as your most trusted servant, he never told a lie.”

The young acolyte narrowed her eyes, still suspicious. “But-” She was quickly silenced when Emeritus placed a finger on her lips.

“I know when people lie to me, Cadence,” he declared. “I always know.” He lowered his hand, but continued to keep his eyes locked on hers. “Gabriel always told the truth, regardless of what it would cost him.”

Cadence nodded her head after a moment, finally understanding. “...So what happened?”

Papa turned away from her again and stared at his hands in silence for a moment. 

“...Raphael lost his ability to fly. I took it away from him. And then…” Emeritus sighed and wrung his hands. “...we banished them, sending them away to another realm.”

In the silence that fell between them yet again, Cadence gazed up at Emeritus’ face. His expression was difficult to read, but she seemed to know what he was thinking about upon seeing the sorrow that was present in his eyes - he missed Omega dearly, having banished the Ghoul in a similar manner to the angels. Gently, she placed a hand on the dark pope’s shoulder. “...It’s okay,” she murmured. 

Emeritus turned to face her and met her eyes yet again. He stared at the young acolyte in silence for a moment before a smile suddenly appeared on his face. A quiet laugh left him.

“Look at you,” he said. “Comforting me when it’s usually you who’s in need of consolation.” His smile widening, he ruffled her hair for a moment. “I’m fine, Ghuleh.”

A smile reappeared on Cadence’s face, and after Papa took his hand off her head she took her hand off his shoulder. But her temporary joy quickly vanished when she suddenly saw Papa’s face become serious again.

“Cadence, listen to me. This last bit is very important.” 

Papa’s statement surprised Cadence, but nevertheless she listened intently. She watched as Emeritus closed his eyes and gave a sigh to compose himself, and when he opened his eyes again he spoke once more:

“The realm in which we are going to be on tour in? It’s the same realm to which they were banished to.”

Cadence’s eyes widened with shock. “Wh-what?! But why?”

“Because if we don’t, Ghuleh, they could return to this realm with a powerful army of followers and try to finish what they had started back in Opus.” Slowly, the dark pope reached out and placed a hand on her neck, right over the spot where Gabriel had slit her throat. “...And we don’t want that, do we?”

Cadence said nothing at first, tears once again beginning to well up in her eyes as the memories of the first attack came rushing back to her. All the suffering and senseless slaughter… she didn’t want to experience that ever again…

“...N-no, we don’t,” she replied, shaking her head. “But… why spend our time there playing music instead of fighting them?”

Papa slowly took his hand off her neck. “Because their beliefs are a direct contrast to ours, and they’re corrupting the countless number of people living there. Our music helps to spread our message and allow people to see the truth. To them, we are the way.” 

He waited for a moment, allowing Cadence to process the everything he had just told her, before reaching out and taking her hand. “But do not fret. We will make sure that you’re fully prepared by the time the tour starts.”

Before long, a smile reappeared on the dark pope’s face. “Besides, think of how far you’ve come since your first night here!” Without warning, he let go of Cadence’s hand and wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly. “I’m so proud of you, amore mio.”

Cadence smiled and closed her eyes as she hugged him back, but they quickly shot open again as she replayed the words Papa had just said to her. Confused, she lifted her head to look up at him.

“...Amore mio? What does that mean?”

Papa didn’t answer Cadence, however. Instead, he pulled away from her and, still smiling, gave another short laugh.

“Ah, forgive me. I keep forgetting that you still don’t know many of the languages I am capable of speaking. I’ll have to teach you at some point.” He ruffled her hair again. “You’ll know what it means soon.”

For a moment after Papa took his hand off her, Cadence didn’t move. She only stared at her hands in silence.

“Is that… all you needed to tell me?” she asked. “...Is that all I need to know?”

Emeritus nodded. “Yes, Ghuleh. It is.”

“Okay…” The young acolyte reached over and grabbed the vial from off the table. “Then… I think I’m ready to take this.”

“Go right ahead. I’m not stopping you.”

At those words, Cadence opened the vial and put it to her lips. When the silvery liquid hit her tongue, she tasted… nothing. It didn’t seem to taste like anything. Nevertheless, she immediately felt relaxed and a sudden desire to lie down.

Emeritus smiled and got up off the bed as Cadence lied down. “...Feeling drowsy?” he asked.

Cadence’s eyes started to feel just a bit heavier. “...A little…”

“That means it’s working.” Slowly, he kneeled down beside the bed, and after a moment gently brushed her bangs out of her eyes. “...Do you want me to stay here?”

A small sound that seemed to resemble a hum of approval left Cadence as she nodded her head in reply.

“Alright. As you wish.” 

Slowly, the dark pope reached out and gently held her hand in his. His thumb traced patterns into her skin as he gazed at her, watching as her eyes continued to close. Oh how he loved her…

With a sigh, he shut his eyes and began to sing in a soft voice.

“Con te partirò  
Paesi che non ho mai  
Veduto e vissuto con te  
Adesso sì le vivrò  
Con te partirò  
Su navi per mari  
Che io lo so  
No no non esistono più  
Con te io li rivivrò  
Con te partirò  
Su navi per mari  
Che io lo so  
No no non esistono più  
Con te io li rivivrò  
Con te partirò  
Io con te…”

Tears were welling up in his eyes by the time he finished singing. If only Cadence could understand Italian… Quickly, he wiped the tears away and looked down. Cadence’s eyes were now completely shut, and there was a soft smile curling her lips. With a sigh he leaned forward, pressing his lips to her hair. The tears did not stop as he murmured her name, his voice filled with such tenderness and love.

“...Why, Cadence?” he asked. “Why can’t I bring myself to tell you?”

Reluctantly, he pulled himself away from her and stood up straight, wiping more tears away as the began leaking out of his eyes. Taking a breath to compose himself, he took a step back away from the bed, his eyes still focused on the young acolyte’s sleeping face. At least the Levisomnus worked… 

“Goodnight, Cadence,” he murmured, beginning to make his way towards the door. “Sleep well.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song papa songs sings is "Con te Partiro" by Andrea Bocelli


	18. Trial

Never before had Mary felt such an unexplainable mixed wave of fear and guilt racing through her head in a dream. 

She was in a courtroom, handcuffs keeping her at the witness stand. Her outfit consisted of just a simple white t-shirt and jeans. Above her, she could see a crowd of people seated in the rows of chairs on the upper floor. Black masks covered the upper half of their faces, and she watched as they turned and whispered to each other, occasionally glancing back in her direction. While she couldn't overhear what they were saying, she could tell that they were talking about her; judging her.

“Wh-what’s going on?!” Mary asked, glancing around the giant room. “Why-”

The sound of a gavel being brought down abruptly cut her off.

“Quiet, defendant!” barked a voice that sounded eerily similar to her own. Cringing, Mary turned towards the judge’s seat, immediately making eye contact with a girl who looked just like her. This version of her was dressed in Cadence’s clerical robe, but the entire robe was crimson. Furthermore, instead of a mask there appeared to be blood running down her face from a wound on her forehead that seemed to be obscured by her bangs.

The bloody version of her turned to face one of the long tables on Mary’s left, then the one on the right. “Prosecutors, you may now speak,” she declared, speaking in a much calmer voice. But she raised it again just seconds later, yelling, “And don’t waste any time loitering or spewing meaningless information!”

The person who was seated closest to Mary at the left table stood up. Like the judge, she also wore a clerical robe, but hers was dark green instead of red. Her hood was up, so Mary could not see her most of her facial features from the angle she was at.

The hooded figure gestured towards Mary with one hand; the young acolyte noticed at that moment that this prosecutor’s nails were long, pointed, and painted a dark evergreen color.

“Members of the jury, I would like to start off by saying that this girl…” A wide grin spread across her face. “...is a complete waste of life.”

Mary’s eyes widened, the words repeating themselves in her mind. “Wh-what? I-”

She abruptly stopped talking and gasped when the hooded prosecutor turned to look at her. Again, like the judge, she looked exactly like her. But there was something different: while there was no blood running down her face, the pupils of her eyes looked more like slits, making them resemble snake eyes. The words Mary wanted to say faded from her mind as she shrunk back, frightened by the green-robed prosecutor’s wide grin and piercing stare.

The snake-eyed Cadence gave a laugh. “Look at that face. She looks like she’s about to cry.” She turned to face the judge once more. “Does that look like the face of a warrior to you, Your Honor?”

The version of Cadence with blood running down her face scowled. “No, it doesn’t,” she answered, narrowing her eyes while staring at Mary. Without warning, she slammed her hands down on the table. “I hate it!”

The prosecutor with the green robe continued to smile, seemingly pleased with the judge’s response. “She makes this face every time someone hurts her- physically or emotionally. A real warrior would simply brush off those attacks like they were nothing!” Another laugh. “Talk about pathetic.”

Mary tightly pressed her lips together and blinked rapidly, doing her best to prevent herself from letting the prosecutor see her break down in tears in front of everyone before her. Every word cut deep like a knife; it hurt.

“Oh, and this band that she’s going to be a part of?” the prosecutor remarked. “They already have an exceptional singer!” Slowly, she turned her head to once again meet Mary’s eyes. “There is absolutely no way she could match his level of talent. What does she possibly think she can bring to the performance that isn’t already there?! Methinks that she would have been better off becoming a mere Sister of Sin, or perhaps it would’ve been best had she stayed with her sister!”

What happened next in that instant frightened Mary, yet she uttered no sound: for a split second, the prosecutor’s eyes flashed a sickly yellow-green color. Immediately she recoiled, but the handcuffs held her at the stand.

The version of Cadence with the green robe seemed to grin triumphantly, as if she had intended to make Mary panic. She stayed motionless for a moment, her eyes returning to their normal color, before turning back towards the judge’s stand once more and giving a slight bow. “That is all, Your Honor.”

The version of Cadence with blood running down her face remained silent for a minute, irate eyes darting back and forth between Mary and the prosecutor. 

“Very well,” she huffed, motioning for the prosecutor to sit down. After the green robed Cadence obeyed, the judge glanced at those at the two tables who hadn’t spoken yet. “Anyone else? C’mon I don’t have all night!”

A quiet, sleepy laugh came from Mary’s right, and everyone in the room turned to look at the person who was seated there. It was yet another version of Cadence, but this one wearing a robe that was black and pale blue. There was no mask on her face, and her eyes were closed as her head rested in her arms.

The judge appeared to become annoyed. “Did I say something that amused you?” she asked, leaning forward slightly at her stand.

The sleeping Cadence didn’t open her eyes as she responded in a bored tone. “...No, Your Honor…” 

The judge’s hands clenched into fists. “Then what was so funny just now?!”

There was a short period of silence before the sleeping girl attempted to speak again. When she did, however, her speech was very muffled and incomprehensible. The judge slammed her hands down on the table in frustration. “Speak up!” she commanded.

The black and blue robed Cadence casually opened her eyes and lifted her head an inch. When she spoke, she sounded half asleep.

“...I was just… After what she said…” She pointed at the one wearing the green robe. “...I remembered how the defendant never bothered to help her sister in their music store. She would rather spend time with Emeritus than work.”

“It’s no wonder she never made enough money,” added a version of Cadence who was wearing a black and yellow robe, leaning back in her chair and resting her feet on the table while twirling a gold coin in her right hand.

The one in black and blue covered her mouth with one hand and yawned. “Talk about lazy,” she remarked before laying her head back down.

A laugh of amusement sounded from the far end of the right table.

“Girls, please,” came yet another voice that sounded just like Mary’s. Mary watched as yet another version of Cadence got up and stood on the table. “I’ve got some news for you.”

Mary observed this version of Cadence as she walked over to where the ones in blue and yellow were seated. This one wore a robe that was red violet. She wore red lipstick and had thick eyelashes, and in her right hand was a red rose. Mary watched as this version of her made her way over to where the ones in blue and yellow were seated and laid down in front of them on the table, one arm resting underneath her head. She held the rose above her face, staring at the red petals as she spoke.

“You see, Your Honor, the defendant…” She gave another quiet laugh. “...seems to have a thing for the dark pope.”

Mary felt her face heat up from embarrassment upon hearing the prosecutor’s words. The judge said nothing in response and merely raised an eyebrow. The prosecutor in green snickered.

“Oh, the thoughts that run through her head!” the one in red violet continued. "She can’t seem to stop thinking about him every waking moment! And when the two of them get intimate...”

“But does she really believe that he feels the same way towards her?” asked the prosecutor in green, standing back up. “I mean, he’s the ruler of Meliora! He clearly doesn’t have the time for romance.”

The one in the red violet robe turned her head to look at her and continued to smile. “Hon’, everyone has at least some time for romance, even a little.”

The one in green scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Well, even if he did, he obviously wouldn’t go for someone like her!” She pointed a finger at Mary accusingly. “Look at her! Compared to Emeritus she looks like a pauper, even in her clergy robe!”

The red violet one merely shrugged. “He doesn’t seem to mind.”

“Oh, you just think that intimacy is the solution to everything and that life is just one big fairy tale, don’t you?!” The green prosecutor’s hands clenched tighter into fists. “Well I’ve got news for you, missy- that’s not how the world works! People will get heartbroken, and she…” She once again pointed at Mary. “...Will clearly get denied! There was a very damn good reason as to why Lucifer-”

Without warning, all but two prosecutors at the end of the left table stood up at once and immediately began shouting at each other. It was absolute chaos, and Mary could not understand a word that was being spoken.

The gavel was brought down again, the loud noise echoing in the room, silencing everyone.

“Quiet! All of you!” yelled the judge, angry eyes scanning the entire room as all of the prosecutors returned to their seats. “We did not come here to quarrel with each other! We gathered here to deal with the defendant!” She turned her head to look at the two prosecutors at the left table who hadn’t stood up during the argument. “Now, you two haven’t said a word since the beginning of this trial. Is there something either of you wish to share?”

The two versions of Cadence said nothing nothing to the judge in response. The one in an orange robe merely shook her head and shrugged her shoulders before taking a bite out of a bread roll that was in her hand. The prosecutor in green flinched and backed away as bread crumbs scattered across the table, brushing her shoulder as she did so. Mary bit her lip as her stomach growled, suddenly feeling hungry. But her eyes were focused on the version of Cadence who was at the farthest end of the left table, seated next to the one in orange and was dressed in a purple robe. Her head was down and she stared at her hands, which were folded in her lap.

“Well, what about you?” the judge asked her, leaning forward. “Do you have anything to say?”

“...No, Your Honor,” the one in violet responded, keeping her head down as she spoke in such a hushed, timid voice that Mary could barely hear her.

The judge exhaled loudly through her nose as she leaned back to sit upright. She took the gavel off her stand.

“Well then, now that we’re finally through with this mediocrity…” The judge began to raise the gavel, preparing to bring it down as she stared Mary dead in the eyes. “I hereby pronounce you-”

The doors to the courtroom behind Mary opened with a loud bang, and immediately everything went silent. Cautious, Mary followed everyone’s stares and turned to look behind her. There, standing in the doorway were two women: one with long, brown hair and a flowing sleeveless black and purple dress, and the other with black hair tied back into a long braid, armor covering her chest and shoulders. Both of them had purple eyes. Mary’s eyes widened upon recognizing them.

Kerstin and Elizabeth.

The two of them walked into the courtroom without saying a word, their gazes focused on Mary as they came forward.

“Hey, you two can’t be in here!” the judge shouted, breaking the silence. “You’re old news!”

“Annoying wretch…” Elizabeth muttered to herself. The countess waved her arm in the judge’s direction, sending a blast of magic which knocked the gavel out of the bloody girl’s hand, sending it tumbling to the floor.

Mary didn’t know whether to be frightened or relieved. Her mouth hung open just slightly as Kerstin took her sword and cut her free from the handcuffs.

“Th-...Th-thank…”

Kerstin silenced Mary with an unemotional stare before the young girl could even finish speaking. Not a word was spoken between the three of them as Elizabeth and Kerstin led her out of the courtroom and into the main hallway. 

Mary watched as they shut the doors and locked them with a silver key. After this was completed, they both turned to look at her. She felt a little intimidated by their gazes, but after a moment she calmed down as they both smiled at her.

“You shouldn’t listen to them, “ Kerstin said. “They’ll only hold you back. They’re nothing but opponents you have to face every moment of your life.”

It took a moment for Kerstin’s words to make sense, but after they finally did Mary hung her head.

“...I try,” she said. “I really do, but… they keep winning.”  
The young acolyte raised her head slightly when she felt Kerstin gently place a hand on her shoulder.

“Then get others to help you. Not every battle can be fought alone.” Kerstin paused as Elizabeth walked over and handed Mary the silver key that had been used to lock the courtroom doors. “Not every door can be opened without a key.”

Mary stared at the silver key she had been given before meeting Kerstin’s eyes yet again. “But… who can I turn to?”

Kerstin’s smile widened slightly. “You know who,” she answered, giving her a wink.

Mary’s eyes lingered on the two older women standing before her, not wanting them to leave. But, to her dismay, they slowly pulled away from her, walking backwards down the hall.

“Make us proud, Cadence,” Kerstin said, looking at her over her shoulder, before turning completely around and following Elizabeth down the hall.

Cadence glanced down at the key once more before lifting her head again, only to realize that Kerstin and Elizabeth had ultimately disappeared. Slowly, a smile spread across her face.

“Don’t worry, guys,” she declared. “I will.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed! I'll let you guys interpret this dream for yourselves. :)


	19. Sisters of Sin

Cadence was still smiling as the dream faded into nothing and she returned back to reality. She blinked a few times, remaining motionless as her brain processed what had just transpired. After realizing where she was, she slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes as she did so. She felt oddly refreshed, which was strange to her as in all her previous nights in this cell she hadn’t gotten such a good sleep. It was a nice change.

“Good to see that you’re finally up, Ghuleh. I was worried this tea was going to get cold.”

The young acolyte turned her head and was surprised to find Papa still near her bedside, holding a cup of tea in his hands. Had he been standing there all night?  
“Papa? What time is it?”

Emeritus smiled at her. “Time? Don’t you mean what night it is?”

Cadence’s smile fell and she blinked at him, confused. “What?”

The dark pope gave a laugh upon seeing her perplexed face. “It’s Thursday, Cadence. You’ve been asleep for three whole nights.”

Cadence's eyes widened and she shook her head after a moment, not believing what she was hearing.

“N-no. No, that...that can’t be right. How-” She paused, doing her best to recall all the events that had transpired before she had gone to sleep. After a moment, she suddenly recalled the vial she had been given, and her confusion slowly disappeared from her face as she finally made the connection. “Oh…”

Emeritus gave another laugh and walked over to her. “I knew you’d realize soon enough.” Carefully, he handed her the cup of tea and waited until she had taken a couple sips before speaking again. “So how are you feeling now?”

Cadence lowered her cup with a sigh upon finishing her drink and remained silent as she allowed the tea to fully wake her up. Only then did she finally realize something: the pain in her head was gone. She smiled.

“Actually, a lot better.” She handed the teacup back to Papa. “Seems that stuff you gave me worked like you said!”

Emeritus smiled upon hearing her response, but his head cocked curiously as he watched her face fall again. “...What’s the matter?” he asked.

Cadence’s eyes were focused on her reflection in the mirror in front of her.

“Eww, I look disgusting.” She messed with her hair for a moment, attempting to make it look nice again, but it still turned out frizzy. 

“Aw, Ghuleh, don’t say that,” Papa said, placing a hand on her shoulder.

The young acolyte said nothing to him in response, however. She tried again to tame the frizziness of her hair, but it was a failed effort; the hair would not stay how she wanted it to. After a moment, she gave a frustrated sigh and gave up, getting up off the bed.  
“Sorry,” she said. She turned and began to head towards the cell’s washroom. “I-I’ll go-”

Cadence abruptly paused when Emeritus stood up and placed a hand on her shoulder again. Confused, she turned her head to look at him. His eyes matched the serious tone of his voice, but there was a smile back on his face.

“No, Cadence. You don’t have to go in there anymore.”

The young acolyte’s eyes narrowed slightly in even more confusion, and she turned to face him completely. “...What? Why?”

The dark pope’s smile widened as he took his hand off her.

“Because it’s no longer necessary for you to stay in this wretched cell,” he answered. “You’re free.”

Immediately, Cadence’s eyes widened with joy, and a smile spread across her face. “R-really?!” Without even waiting for a response from Emeritus, she reached out and hugged him tightly. “Thank you!”

She stayed like that for a moment, not saying a word, only overjoyed thoughts racing through her mind. After a while, however, she pulled back and looked down at herself. “...but I can’t go out there looking like this!”

Papa only continued to smile at her. “Which is why I arranged a little something for you,” he said.

Now Cadence was intrigued. “Really? What is it?”

“You’ll see,” the dark pope answered, giving a slight chuckle. 

He led her out of the dimly lit cell and into the hallway. Cadence had to blink a few times to get used to the lighting, but once her eyes finally adjusted to her surroundings she looked down to see Annali sitting by the wall in front of her.

The siamese cat met Cadence’s eyes and stared at her for a moment in silence before turning to face Emeritus. “Ready to go?” she asked.

Yeesh. Not even a hello?

“Yes, Annali, we are,” Papa responded, nodding his head. He then turned his head to look at Cadence and took hold of her hand. “Hold on,” he commanded.

Cadence nodded her head in acknowledgement and grasped the dark pope’s hand tightly. As Annali strode towards them and transformed into a cloud of black smoke, the young acolyte shut her eyes. The familiar sensation of the freezing wind hit her without warning, only to quickly dissipated as she and the dark pope were transported to whatever destination Emeritus had in mind. Only when the wind stopped completely did she open her eyes again.

She was in another hallway, one that looked similar to the hallway she had been in previously yet was unfamiliar to her. Multiple identical-looking doorways lined it on both sides. Cadence could hear multiple female voices coming from the door closest to her.   
It took the young acolyte a moment to finally realize where she was.

“This is… the Sisters’ dormitories…” she said, speaking out loud. She turned to face Papa, confusion and curiosity spreading across her face. “What are we doing here?”

“Remember how I said you didn’t have to worry about trying to fix your appearance?” Smirking, Papa stepped closer to the door. “Well…” He turned to face the door and with one hand lightly tapped it three times in quick procession. “She’s all yours, ladies!” he called before backing away so that he was standing beside Cadence once more.

A moment passed before the door opened, and Cadence saw Cirice standing in the doorway. The Sister of Sin beamed with happiness upon seeing her, then turned to face Emeritus.

“Thank you, Papa. I promise we won't disappoint you.”

The dark pope nodded his head in acknowledgement. “You ladies take all the time you need.” He then turned and met Cadence’s eyes again. “I’ll see you later, Cadence,” he said with a smile before turning around and walking down the hall, Annali following him close behind.

Cadence watched as Emeritus rounded the corner before turning to face Cirice again. She smiled up at the slightly taller Sister of Sin, although there was a hint of uncertainty in her eyes.

“It’s alright, Cadence,” Cirice reassured her, noticing the young acolyte’s hesitancy. “You’re welcome here.” She paused, opening the door wider to grant Cadence access into the room. “In fact…”

“Oh my gosh she’s here! She’s here!”

No sooner had Cadence taken a couple steps into the room than one of the Sisters squealed in delight and rushed up to her, hugging her tightly. “It’s you! It’s really really you!”

Cirice gave a laugh. “Some of us have been very eager to meet you.”

Cadence could only give a short laugh in response, wincing slightly from the Sister’s tight embrace. There were countless Sisters of Sin working throughout the entire premise every night, but Cadence had only been able to talk with Cirice and a few others on a couple occasions. And she didn’t know which dorm rooms each of them resided in, having been down here only once before when she got lost during her third night as an acolyte.

Cirice shut the door quietly, her eyes now focused on the Sister who had her arms wrapped around Cadence. “Alright, Aspen, I think you should let her go now,” she said, smiling as she addressed her fellow nun by name.

Slightly startled, Aspen released her hold on Cadence and stepped back, an apologetic yet overjoyed smile present on her face. Finally, Cadence was able to get a good look at her. She was just slightly taller, had pale skin and yellow-green eyes, and there seemed to be strands of red hair peaking out from below the rim of her cap.

“Sorry! Sorry!” Aspen exclaimed, feeling a little embarrassed. “I didn’t mean to startle you. It’s a bad habit of mine. I’m just so glad to finally meet you! I’ve heard so much from Cirice, Eve, and Mabel!” The Sister then leaned forward suddenly, observing Cadence’s face for a moment. “Oh my gosh, your eyes are soooo pretty!”

Cadence blushed from Aspen’s praise. “Th-thank you.” She then took the time to glance around the room, taking in the new surroundings. It was a very large room- big enough to fit two bunk beds, one on each side.

“I’ve never seen eyes that color before!” Without warning, Aspen removed her cap and veil, allowing her long hair to fall out. “And I’ll bet you’ve never seen ears like mine!”

Confusion showed on Cadence’s face for only a second before Aspen moved her hair out of the way so she could show the young acolyte what she was talking about. Cadence stared in awe at the sight before her.

Aspen’s ears were pointed.

“Woah...Why are they like that?”

“Because she’s a dryad.”

Hearing another voice nearby, Cadence turned slightly towards the source of it to see another Sister sitting on the lower left bunk, her cap and veil also completely removed. She had slightly tanned skin, and her hair was dark like Cirice’s. Brown eyes shone behind her thin frame glasses.

Cadence blinked, not quite catching what the Sister had said. “...A what?”

“A dryad,” she repeated. “A tree nymph or spirit. They are quite common in Greek Mythology.”

Aspen giggled. “Nothing ‘mythological’ about me,” she said, pointing to her ears. 

The Sister laughed with Aspen for a moment before closing the book that had been in her hands and getting up off the bed. She held out her hand as she walk over towards Cadence. “Dianna,” she said, introducing herself. “It’s nice to finally meet you, Cadence.”

Cadence wanted to say something nice in reply, but she felt a little intimidated by Dianna’s height; she was practically as tall as Air.

“I’m so sorry,” Cirice said, moving so that she was standing beside Dianna. “I know this must be a little overwhelming, meeting all of us at once when you’ve just gotten out of that cell.”

The young acolyte smiled. “No, no. It’s fine.”

“We’ve been ordered by Papa to get you ready,” Cirice continued. “There’s supposed to be a celebration of sorts later tonight.” She paused for a moment, glancing at the faces of her fellow Sisters before returning her gaze to the young acolyte’s face. “If you’d like, we can draw a bath for you to start.”

Cadence smiled and nodded her head. “Yeah, that would be great.”

***

Having finished her bath, Cadence returned to the main room in the dorm, now wearing a spare evening dress that Aspen had provided her. When she entered, however, she was surprised to find another Sister of Sin present in the room.

The Sister did not seem to notice Cadence when she walked in and continued to talk with Cirice. She appeared rather cross.

“Cirice, why do I see all of these makeup sets out when we need only one?” she asked, gesturing towards a surplus of lipsticks, eyeshadows, blushes, and eyeliners that had amounted on the table next to the mirror.

Cirice flinched and averted her eyes.

“I-I... I was hoping to let her...pick the colors…”

The Sister of Sin emitted a loud sigh of frustration and shook her head.

“No no no! You just don’t get it!” Without warning, she took hold of Cirice’s hand and smacked it three times as she continued to speak. “The colors have to coordinate! If they don’t, she’ll look like a disaster!” 

With a huff, the Sister released her hold on Cirice’s hand, and upon turning around she finally noticed Cadence standing there. Her anger lessened just slightly, and she pressed her lips together as she looked Cadence up and down.

“I-I’ll just… go help Aspen pick out a dress for her...or something…” Cirice murmured. She inched her way around the slightly taller Sister of Sin before exiting the room to join Aspen near the closet.

Cadence felt intimidated by the Sister’s almost judgemental stare. Why was she looking at her like that? There was silence for only a moment before the Sister sighed again.

“...I’ve seen worse,” she muttered. She then pulled out the chair and motioned for her to sit down.

Cadence obeyed without saying a word, and once she sat down at the mirror she could finally observe the Sister’s features. She had pale skin, yellow-green eyes, and there seemed to be strands of silver hair peeking out from underneath her cap.

“So you’re the one Cirice has been telling us about?” the Sister asked. “You’re Cadence?”

“Yes.” The young acolyte nodded her head in reply. “...You?”

The Sister of Sin picked up a hairbrush and began to run it slowly through Cadence’s drying hair. “...Luna,” she answered, speaking as if the question annoyed her.

Immediately, Cadence got the hint - Luna wasn’t much for conversation. She remained silent as the Sister of Sin continued brushing her hair, not moving an inch until the brush was put back down.

“I know who you are.”

It took a moment for Luna’s words to register, but when they did Cadence turned her head to look at her. “...Wh-what?”

Luna stared down at Cadence for a moment before she leaned forward to whisper into her ear. When she spoke, her voice was hushed.

“I know you were Elizabeth. I saw you back then. I've been around since Opus too. I know all about the regeneration process. I’m the only Sister who does. Papa trusts me with this information more than any of them.”

Luna pulled away from Cadence just as Dianna was walking back into the room. “Dianna, you curl her hair,” she said, raising her voice back to a normal volume. “I’m going to check on the others.” Without saying another word, she left Cadence and disappeared into the small room where Cirice and Aspen were.

Dianna watched as Luna disappeared into the room before giving a sigh and walking over to Cadence. When she got to the mirror, a smile reappeared on her face.

“Sorry about Luna,” she said. “She tends to be a bit...overbearing at times…”

“It’s okay.” Cadence watched as Dianna plugged the curling iron into the wall and waited for it to heat up. “I mean… at least she’s not as bad as Sister Imperator.”

Dianna laughed for a moment. “Nema to that!” She took a bit of Cadence’s hair and began to curl the ends. “But she’s very serious when it comes to following Papa’s orders, and since he’s ordered us to get you ready she doesn’t want to let him down.” She waited a couple seconds, allowing the strands of hair to curl before releasing the iron’s hold. “I haven’t seen anyone this serious about fashion since the time Sister Madison bought all those fashion magazines. She just couldn’t put them down!”

“...Sister Madison?”

Dianna continued curling. “You might know her better as ‘Mist’.”

Cadence's eyes widened. “Mist used to be a Sister of Sin?!”

“One of the best, so I’ve been told.” Dianna paused for a moment, taking the time to curl the rest of the hair on Cadence’s right before moving over to her left. “I only got to be with her for a few months before she suddenly became a Ghoul.” She smiled and gave a quiet laugh. “None of us were expecting that!”

Cadence smiled, trying to picture the scene in her head. “...So how did you become a Sister?” she asked after a moment. 

Dianna ceased curling her hair for a moment, thinking back.

“...It was during their last tour. I had gone to their concert and met up with the band after the show.”

“W-wait…” Cadence turned her head to look at her. “...So you’re from that other realm that Papa talks so much about?”

Dianna nodded her head in reply, then continued to curl Cadence’s hair after the young acolyte turned her head back around. “Things...weren’t the best for me there. When I met with the band that night, Papa told me he saw something in me and convinced me to become a Sister of Sin.” Another pause, and then she smiled. “I’m still not sure what he saw in me, but I couldn’t be happier now. I love it here.”

In the silence that fell, Cadence smiled to herself, suddenly thinking back to all the good times she’d had here during her first few weeks. She had learned how to fight, been taught to sing, and witnessed more magic than she even knew existed. As Dianna finally finished curling her hair, the young acolyte realized something: she had changed a lot. She’d learned so much about herself; more than she ever thought she could learn. 

“...I love it here too,” she said.

Dianna finally finished curling Cadence’s hair and unplugged the curling iron just as Luna, Cirice, and Aspen came out with the dress.

“Ah, perfect, you’re done with her hair!” Cirice exclaimed. She then turned to face Cadence and held up the gown so the young acolyte could see it. “Well, Cadence, what do you think? Do you like it?”

Silently, Cadence looked the dress up and down for a moment before finally nodding her head. 

Aspen smiled. “Yay! She likes it!” She jumped up and down, clapping her hands excitedly. “You’re going to look so pretty in this!”

Before Cadence knew it, the four Sisters all helped her into the fancy purple gown. Once this was completed, they all stepped back to admire their work. A smile seemed to tug at Luna’s mouth.

“Well done, girls,” she said, walking over to the mirror. “Now then, I’ll just apply the makeup and then we’ll be all set.”

She glanced down at the various cosmetics Cirice had laid out earlier, observing each and every one of them in order to pick out the perfect color. After a moment, she settled on the bronze-colored eyeshadow and opened it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that Mist's real name isn't really Madison, but I didn't want to use her real name, even though we all know who she is.


	20. Amore

It had been a long time since Cadence had worn a dress this lengthy, and she was finding it a bit difficult to walk without the risk of stumbling. She had to keep one hand on the railing while Sister Dianna held her other arm for support. 

“You’re doing great. Just a couple more flights."

Cadence nodded her head in acknowledgement, keeping her eyes focused on where she was walking so she wouldn’t trip on the dress as she thought quietly to herself. None of the Sisters had answered her when she asked about who or what the party was for, and pretty soon she found herself trying to come up with reasonable answers on her own. 

Was it to celebrate her finally leaving the cell? No, there was no way they would have her get dolled up just for that… 

Was it to celebrate a clergy member’s birthnight? If it was, she couldn’t seem to think of who it could be for. She didn’t know any of the birthnights of the Ghouls. All she knew was that it couldn’t be for Papa, as his birthnight had been back in March.

Perhaps it was to celebrate the upcoming tour?

Cadence nodded to herself after a moment. Yeah, that made the most sense.

Before long, the two women ascended the flights of stairs and finally made it to the dining hall. Cadence glanced around the large room as she released her hold on Dianna. To her surprise, all the lights had been turned off. There were various decorations of sorts on the walls and the table, but she couldn’t make them out very well due to the lights being so dim. What she could sort-of make out in the darkness was a dark purple table cloth, and what appeared to be dark-colored streamers hanging from the ceiling. 

The young acolyte glanced around the room, confused. It was usually so crowded here. Where was everyone?

“Surprise!”

Dahlia’s high-pitched voice abruptly broke the silence as the tabby kitten leapt onto the table, startling the young acolyte. A green party hat was currently resting on her tiny head, a little lopsided. After taking a moment to settle down, Cadence noticed a pair of silver horns peeking out over the table next to the familiar.

“Dahlia, Papa told us to wait for his cue!” Earth exclaimed.

“Oh…right...” The tabby kitten’s ears fell slightly and she lowered her head in shame. “Sorry…”

Cadence smiled as Earth stood up from behind the table and picked Dahlia up, scratching her behind the ears. Suddenly, the lights switched back on, and after adjusting to the brightness the young acolyte turned to see Papa standing next to the nearby light switch, smiling at her. With a chuckle, he took a step away from the wall as the other Ghouls came out from behind the table and gently took her hand.

“Happy birthnight, Cadence,” he said.

Cadence’s eyes widened when the words registered in her brain. It was her birthnight? This party was for her? “...What?”

“Have you forgotten?” Papa asked, still smiling. “It’s September eighth. Your birthnight.”

Finally, it clicked, and before long a smile returned to Cadence’s face.

“Oh my gosh, guys! You didn’t have to do all this for me!”

“On the contrary,” Air remarked, smiling underneath his mask. “I think this is the least we could’ve done.”

The young acolyte’s smile widened as she glanced around the room, meeting everyone’s eyes. She was practically beaming with joy. “Thank you so much!”

Mist could hardly contain her excitement as she jumped up and down, clapping her hands. “I’ll go get your present!” she announced before quickly dashing off. Out of the corner of her eye, Cadence saw Dianna leave with another Sister of Sin towards the kitchen area.

The young acolyte turned to face Papa once more as Water went over to the nearby record player and turned it on, blasting upbeat music from the 80s. The dark pope smiled down at her for a moment before leaning forward to whisper to her. 

“Meet me in my study at twenty, alright?”

Without waiting for a response from her, he stepped away, hands clasped behind his back. “Enjoy the party, Cadence,” he said, still smiling, before turning around to join Air near the table with the refreshments.

It didn’t take long for the party to go into full swing, especially after a couple of the Ghouls had gotten some alcohol into their system. The usually serious and reserved Alpha became a dancing fool when “I Wanna Dance with Somebody” came on, causing everyone who witnessed the spectacle to burst out laughing. Mist had dragged Cadence onto the dancefloor during “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.” Admittedly, Cadence wasn’t that great of a dancer, but she still had a lot of fun trying, regardless. Earth, Air, and Water didn’t really dance that much, although Earth was nodding his head along to the music while swinging his legs back and forth as he sat at one of the tables. Papa, as she had expected, had been pretty much flawless with his dance, and had received the loudest applause when he was done.

She plopped down into a chair after a while, temporarily exhausted from the dancing.

“Cadence!”

Hearing the high-pitched voice, Cadence turned to see one of the familiars standing directly across from her on top of the table. She smiled. “Hi Liam!”

The munchkin cat waddled over and gazed up at her with his bright blue eyes. “I missed you,” he said.

Carefully, the young acolyte picked him up. “I missed you too, buddy,” she replied, petting his head. “You having fun?” She giggled when he tapped her nose with his tiny paw. After a moment, however, she suddenly noticed someone sitting in the chair across from her. “Oh, hi Special!”

The Ghoul smiled behind his mask and waved. “Hey! Good to see you again.” He paused momentarily to glance down at the dress she was wearing. “You look really nice.”

Cadence blushed from the compliment and put Liam down next to her. “Thank you.”

Special nodded his head in acknowledgement before offering her a glass with ice in it. “Water?”

“Yes, please. I am so thirsty.” She took the drink from him and eagerly took some sips before setting it back down again. “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Cadence remained silent for a moment, then suddenly glanced over at Papa before turning back towards Special. “Hey, I’ve been wondering something…”

The Ghoul tilted his head curiously. “What’s that?”

The young acolyte glanced around the room, ensuring no one else could overhear her before turning to face Special once more. “So… if the Opus era had been around for centuries…” She dared another glance in Papa’s direction. “...then I’m not really eighteen, am I?”

Special shook his head in response. “No, you’re not.”

“...Then how old am I really?”

“Um…” The Ghoul paused, aimlessly moving his hands in unusual patterns as he thought to himself, mumbling. “Well… Luna arrived sometime around 1692… and by then you were probably just getting to be…” She didn’t hear him say the number out loud. “...so that makes you about…” He paused again, then suddenly snapped his fingers after a moment as he found his answer. “... four hundred twenty-six, as of tonight.”

Cadence’s eyes went wide and her mouth hung open as she repeated the number over and over in her head. “F-f-four...what?!” She then groaned and lowered her head, hitting it on the table. “Oh, sweet Satan, I’m old!” she mumbled.

Special chuckled and patted her arm.

“Hey, don’t sweat it! You look great.”

Cadence slowly lifted her head and stared at Special for a moment. Before long, a smile reappeared on her face as she gave a laugh. “Thanks… I guess I just-”

“Caaaaaaake!” Dahlia shouted, interrupting her.

Cadence turned to see two Sisters of Sin carrying a big, fancy cake into the room. 

Dahlia hopped up and down as they carefully set it down on the table. “I want a piece! I want a piece!”

“Cadence gets the first slice, Dahlia,” Earth said, smiling as he picked up the tabby kitten. “You know how this works.”

Smiling, Cadence got up from her seat and walked over to the cake just as the lights were dimmed and the candles were lit. Her eyes scanned over everyone's faces as they joined their voices in song. But she couldn't focus on the words, and instead found herself once again thinking back to the time when she had only just recently become an acolyte. She then thought even further, recalling all the happy memories from her previous two lives, and her smile widened. Although many had come and gone, the clergy and its members had always been there for her.

Her eyes suddenly met Papa’s as the song began to come to a close. In an instant, she felt such joy and gratefulness for all that he'd done for her. He was there for her when no one else was. Staring back at him, she caught sight of that familiar caring gaze once again, and her heart seemed to soar, only to be brought back down to earth again as she blew out the candles.

***

Cadence stared herself in the mirror as she turned, watching how the long, black cape (the present Mist gave her) moved with her. It was very strange to not be in that cell anymore - And to finally have her own room, nonetheless! It was definitely going to be weird adjusting to not being in the same room as Earth and Dahlia all the time.

Before she knew it, the young acolyte overheard the chimes signaling that it was twenty, and she suddenly remembered what Papa had told her during the party. She quickly left her room and traversed the many hallways with haste, not stopping until she finally arrived at the door to the dark pope’s study.

She hesitated for a moment before lightly knocking on the door.

“Come in.”

Taking a breath to calm herself, Cadence turned the doorknob and entered the room. As she closed the door slowly behind her, she noticed that Papa wasn’t sitting behind his desk as he usually was. She became confused and glanced around the room. Where was he?

“In here, Ghuleh,” came his voice from her right.

The young acolyte turned to see the that the door to Papa’s bedroom was wide open. Her face heated up upon seeing this. Shockingly, although she and Emeritus had been… intimate before, not once had she ever set foot in his room. Her mind raced with thoughts of what could possibly be awaiting her as she made her way closer to the open door. 

When she entered the room, she saw the dark pope sprawled across the bed, still clothed with the back of one hand resting against his forehead. When he noticed that she was standing in the doorway, a smile spread across his face as a quiet laugh left him.

“Alas, I have fallen and cannot get back up.”

A smile quickly returned to Cadence’s face and she laughed.

“You goof!” She then made her way over to the side of the bed, being careful not to trip over her dress or cape, and placed her hands on his shoulders. “C’mere.” She gently pulled him up to a sitting position, and laughed when he suddenly pulled her close and held her tightly against him, kissing the top of her head.

“You’re so cute when you laugh, Cadence,” he murmured. He hesitated before loosening his hold on her and gazed at her face with his mismatched eyes. “Did you enjoy the party we threw for you?”

Cadence continued to smile and immediately nodded her head in response. “Yes, Papa. I…” She paused, blushing for a moment. “...I think it was the best party I ever had.”

The dark pope’s smile widened. “I’m so glad you feel that way.” With one hand, he gently caressed the side of her face. “We’d want nothing less for our beloved countess.”

“Former countess, Papa,” Cadence said, correcting him. Her smile suddenly began to disappear and she averted her eyes, looking down. “I...I’m nothing more than a peasant now…”

“Don’t say that.”

The young acolyte’s eyes widened slightly when she heard Papa’s tone abruptly turn serious (almost angry) and felt him gently grip her chin. For what felt like an eternity, not a single sound was uttered as the two of them stared at each other, and Cadence could only hear the pounding of her heart in her ears as she tried to take calm, slow breaths.

“Don’t say that…” Emeritus repeated, whispering this time as he brought her face closer to his. Not waiting for any sort of response, he shut his eyes as his lips touched hers, and a soft sound left him as he kissed her.

Cadence was momentarily surprised by the kiss, but regardless it didn’t take long for her eyes to close as well. She savored every second that passed, bundling up the black fabric of his suit in her hands as she gripped his shoulders. But soon after one hand gently entangled itself in his raven black hair. The young acolyte wasn’t entirely sure what she wanted at the moment. All she knew was that she wanted to be with Papa and never let him go.

A quiet whimper left Cadence as the dark pope slowly pulled away from her. He remained silent, staring into her lavender eyes for a moment before leaning forward once again, pressing his lips to her ear.

“Cadence, you may not be exactly the same person as you were centuries ago…” He gently tucked a strand of chocolate brown hair behind her ear. “...but that doesn’t change the fact that…” He paused, seeming to hesitate for a moment before taking a breath. “...that I love you.”

For the longest time after Emeritus pulled away, Cadence was silent, her eyes widening as she repeated everything she had just heard in her mind. After a while, a smile once again began to tug at her lips.

“You...You mean it?” she asked. She blinked rapidly, attempting to not break down into tears.

A smile returned to Papa’s face, and he gently caressed her cheek with one hand. 

“Yes, Cadence. I’ve loved you for the longest time. I just… never had the courage to tell you until now…” He took his hand away when the young acolyte sniffled as tears began to stream down her face, feeling shame creep back up on him. Gently, he took her hand and rubbed the back of it in small circles. “I am so sorry I made you think that I didn’t love you. I should have told you the night you confessed your feelings to me…”

“I-It’s okay.” Still smiling, Cadence wrapped her arms around the dark pope and hugged him tightly, placing her chin between his neck and shoulder. “I’ve loved you this entire time…”

“I just… I don’t want anything to happen to you…I don’t want to lose you. Not after what happened to-”

“Papa.” Cadence pulled back a little, her hands resting on Emeritus’ shoulders as she stared into his mismatched eyes. “I’m not going anywhere.” She smiled down at him as she ran her fingers through his hair. “You mean the world to me.”

Upon hearing those words, the dark pope choked back a sob before closing his eyes, eagerly accepting the kiss Cadence placed on his lips. For a moment he wondered if this was even real; he worried that this was just another dream he was having, and that when he opened his eyes he would once again find himself alone. But when he finally dared to open his eyes, she was still there before him, wiping the tears from her face.

Taking in a breath, Emeritus blinked rapidly, attempting to not let his own tears show. Doing his best to keep calm, he placed his hands on the sides of her body, running them down until they rested at her hips.

“Ghuleh...I want to love you properly.”

Confusion now showed on the young acolyte’s face, her eyes darting back and forth between Papa’s face and where his hands rested on her body. “...What?”

“I want you to know how it feels when I make love to you while you know with all your heart that I truly love you.” He lifted his head upward again and met her eyes. “Would that be alright?”

There was a moment of silence as Cadence nibbled her bottom lip, thinking about her decision. Slowly, she got off his lap and stood directly in front of him. Her eyes never left his as she unclasped the cape, letting it slip off her shoulders and fall to the floor. She then reached behind to undo the zipper on her dress, but her hands shook as she grabbed it, and she could not bring herself to pull it down. 

Seeing the uncertainty in her eyes, Papa stood up and gently placed his hands on Cadence’s shoulders.

“Ghuleh, you're trembling. What's wrong?” he asked. He cupped her face with one hand as he awaited her answer.

“I…” The young acolyte averted her eyes and did her best to come up with an explanation for her fear, but found none. “I don't know…”

Concern showed on the dark pope’s face as he gently pressed his forehead to hers. “Cadence, look at me. If you don't want to do this, I'm okay with that. Do not feel that you are required to get into bed with me just because I want you to. You are allowed to tell me ‘no’ if you don't feel comfortable with doing something I ask of you.”

“N-no, Papa, it's not that. I want this. I just…” Cadence lowered her arms as she continued to gaze back at him. “It...seems different this time…”

At this, a smile once again returned to Emeritus’ face.  
“Because this time you know I love you, Cadence,” he said. “And if there is even the slightest bit of doubt still lingering in your mind at this very moment, I want to help you dispose of it.” He lightly kissed her forehead before pressing his lips to her ear again, rubbing her shoulders in small circles with his thumbs while doing so. “Please, amore mio, we have the whole night to ourselves. Let me love you.”

Cadence took a shaky breath as she attempted to keep herself calm. When Emeritus finally stepped back again, she hesitated for a moment before finally pulling the zipper down slowly, kicking off her heeled shoes soon afterwards. 

“I... I want you, Papa,” she murmured.

Emeritus smiled and sighed as the long, purple gown slipped off her body, leaving her clad in nothing but her black undergarments. His eyes took their time roaming over her entire form before meeting her eyes again.

“You’re so beautiful, Ghuleh.” Taking the fabric of one glove between his teeth, he tugged at each finger until the glove on his right hand was removed and dropped on the floor. The left one followed suite. The dark pope felt a slight pang of grief in his heart when his eyes fell upon the ring he was wearing, but he quickly suppressed the feeling and proceeded to undo the silver buttons on his suit.

The longing feeling inside Cadence grew as Papa revealed more and more of himself to her. Her breath caught in her throat for a moment after he shrugged off his suit jacket and shirt, exposing his entire chest. She still couldn’t believe how beautiful he was, and how all of his beauty belonged to her. 

“Papa…” She wanted to say something, anything to compliment his looks like he had with hers, but she could not find what to say. It seemed that not a single word she came up with could possibly fully describe how she truly felt.

The dark pope carefully wrapped his arms around Cadence and held her against him silently for a moment, petting the back of her head affectionately.

“I love you, Cadence,” he whispered. He then gripped her hair a little tighter, not enough to be painful, and brought her in for yet another kiss, all the while bringing her closer to the bed until they fell onto it. He didn’t let up even when he rolled over so that he loomed over her, deepening the kiss and occasionally nibbling her lips. Feeling her arms wrap around him, he quickly added his tongue, which in turn made her hold onto him tighter and moan into his mouth. By the time he finally pulled away, Cadence was breathless, her eyes remaining shut as she recovered. The very sight of her like this brought a smile to his face as he also attempted to catch his breath, and he brushed her bangs out of her eyes as she once again gazed up at him. 

Cadence watched as Papa pulled the curtains of the canopy bed shut, officially closing the two of them off from the outside and finally secluding them in their own little world. She held her breath as the dark pope brought her close again. With diligent hands, he undid her bra, quickly dropping it onto the floor. The young acolyte’s breath quickened as he brought his face closer to her chest, whimpering as he planted sloppy kisses and suckled on on the area between her breasts, which he kneaded slowly.

But after a bit, her mind yelled at her to not just sit there and do nothing. With a little hesitation, Cadence placed her hand on Papa's chest and slowly trailed it downward. Gently, she pressed her hand against his growing erection and began to rub him through his trousers. He quickly reciprocated the action, grinding against her hand and emitting a quiet grunt as he shut his eyes.

“Yes, that’s it…” he whispered into her ear. “Good girl.” He groaned her name as she quickened her movements slightly and nipped teasingly at her earlobe.

Cadence yelped in surprise as she was suddenly pushed down into the mattress again. She gazed eagerly up at Papa as he hovered over her, his eyes clearly hinting at his desire.

“I'm sorry. I can't help myself,” he whispered.

He gave her another kiss, more fiery and full of passion this time, all the while trailing a hand down her body at a leisurely pace until he reached the spot between her legs. One finger hooked underneath her panties and began to tug them down as he pulled away, granting them both the ability to breathe.

Cadence watched Emeritus with eyes full of anticipation, wondering just what he was going to do next.

“Ghuleh, after that night you confessed your feelings to me…” Papa's hands slowly made their way to his belt. “...I couldn't stop thinking about you.”

The young acolyte nibbled her lower lip, watching as Emeritus’ belt was slowly undone. Her impatience was beginning to build; she wanted to yell at him to hurry, but she also was curious as to what he was going to say. She held her breath as she heard his pants hit the floor and he leaned forward to whisper into her ear again.

“I would picture you laid out before me, just like this.” His thumb pressed gently against her clit and rubbed it, making her gasp. As she attempted to comprehend all that was happening, Cadence noticed that Emeritus’ voice seemed to be getting lower.

“You'd be lying there, begging for me to be inside you. To make you feel the best kind of sinful pleasure there is.”

A small cry left Cadence as she felt one finger slip inside her. A smirk began to form on Papa's face upon feeling how wet she was.

“But I wouldn't do that just yet. No, I'd make you wait.” A second finger was added as he quickened his pace, making the young acolyte writhe underneath him. “I'd take my time with you. I would touch you all over, but never where you needed it most, making you cry out more and more.”

“P-Papa, please…” Cadence whined, pleading with her eyes and struggling to form words. She only got a quiet laugh in response.

“But I wouldn't let up. I would pull your hair, bite your neck, grind against you… everything that you like...”

“Please!” Cadence shut her eyes and pressed the back of her head into the mattress. She needed him...

“And then… just when you thought you couldn't take any more…” He suddenly removed his fingers from her, making Cadence whimper. “I would finally give in to your demands.” His fingers disappeared into his mouth as his mismatched eyes met hers once again, and after a moment his smile widened. “And I would make you scream.”

Gritting her teeth, Cadence wrapped her arms around Emeritus and pulled him closer.

“P-please, Papa. I need you…” she begged. “Please…!”

The dark pope smiled upon hearing her desperation, but the grin was no longer mischievous. He seemed to have finally reverted back to his previous, much kinder state. With one hand, he gently caressed Cadence’s cheek as he nuzzled his lips against hers, all the while lining himself up with her entrance.

“I love it when you beg like that…” he whispered. Emeritus closed his eyes and placed a soft kiss on her lips before pulling away a little. He paused for only a split second before sliding in, hissing softly as her nails dug into his back and nearly swooning from the feeling of being inside her. “Fuck, you feel so good, Cadence…” he groaned as he began to move, giving her little time to adjust.

Papa’s slow movements dragged loud whines and whimpers out of Cadence as she felt more and more pleasure race through her with each thrust. She arched her back, eager to feel more of him as she begged in a loud voice. 

“H-harder, Papa! Please, m-more…!”

The dark pope smiled. Slowing his pace, he moved agonizingly slowly until he was nearly all the way out of her. His next thrust hit Cadence in just the right spot so hard that her loud moan nearly turned into a scream. Her hands gripped the sheets tightly as he did this over and over, each thrust bringing both of them closer and closer to the precipice.

“Amore…” Moaning, Emeritus grabbed Cadence’s legs and propped them up on his shoulders before continuing his movements. He relished in her cries of pleasure as he sped up; words in various languages escaping past his lips as he hit all the right spots.

Cadence cracked open her eyes to gaze up at Papa’s face, and what she saw nearly hurtled her off into orgasm right then and there. His eyes were shut in a mix of concentration and pleasure, and his sweaty bangs were falling over his face. The sight of him like this took her breath away.

“L-look at me,” she begged, feeling her end nearing.  
Emeritus’ gaze quickly found hers after his brain processed what Cadence said. Smiling, he stared into her lavender eyes for a moment before he leaned forward, pressing his lips to her ear. “...Come for me, Cadence...My beautiful girl…”

And she did. Wave after wave of pleasure coursed through her entire being as an orgasm stronger than any she'd felt before hit her, making her scream his name in bliss. Her cries further invigorated the dark pope, and it wasn't long before he followed soon after, crying out her name in pleasure.

Cadence’s entire body trembled as she slowly came down from her high. Taking a moment to catch her breath, she opened her eyes, releasing her hold on the bed sheets as she gazed up at Emeritus, smiling.

“P-...Papa, that...that was amazing. I...oh my gosh…”

Smiling, Papa caressed the side of Cadence’s face for a moment before carefully pulling out. He laid down on his side beside Cadence’s left, his hands lazily moving over her face, gently brushing sweaty strands of hair away. Before long, he wrapped his arms around her and held her body against his.

“Cadence…” he murmured softly, nearly tearing up from the immense joy he was feeling. “I love you so much…”

The young acolyte’s smile widened, and as she stared into his green and white eyes she placed a hand on his chest, right where his heart was. “I love you too,” she responded, adding a little giggle at the end as she felt him nuzzle his lips against her cheek.

“Amore…” he whispered lovingly. He closed his eyes as he kissed her, rubbing small circles into her shoulders with his thumbs.

Cadence rested her head against the dark pope's chest after he pulled away, feeling herself slowly becoming more and more tired. The word Papa just whispered to her repeated itself over and over in her mind. She didn't know what the word meant, but it sounded so beautiful and personal that it made her blush a little. Her eyes were just about to close completely when she suddenly heard Papa whisper to her again.

“That means ‘my love.’”

The young acolyte’s smile widened upon hearing those words. She was his love; she belonged to him, just as he did to her. As her eyes began to close completely, she felt like she had finally claimed something she'd been searching for for so long. And now, she wanted nothing more than to fall asleep and stay locked in Papa's embrace until she awoke the next night.

And when she finally did, it warmed her heart to see him still lying next to her.


End file.
